Locust attack termed more lethal than COVID-19

By Masood Sattar Khan
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Awais Leghari, a former federal minister, has termed the locust attack in different provinces of the country as more dangerous than coronavirus (COVID-19), giving a wakeup call to the incumbent government to take immediate steps to ensure food security.

In a video message, he was of the opinion that the present locust attack posed massive challenge to the agriculture economy of Pakistan. 

“The locust attacks had started eight months back in different part of Balochistan, Sindh and Punjab provinces. As all over the world, many means are being used including aerial spray through small plane to combat locust attack, the government has been urged to adopt every step to protect the crops and orchards from complete destruction,” he suggested. 

“Presently the locust attack was reported to be in full scale in various tehsils of Punjab including the one the sitting Chief Minister (Usman Buzdar) hails,” the former Minister pointed out. 

Awais Leghari warned that as per estimate the locust could damage eighty percent of Pakistan’s agriculture output, one needed to take immediate counter steps to safe remaining twenty percent of the crops. 

He added that the locust attack not only caused starvation for human beings but even for the animals as well.