The locust invasion has damaged crops in half a dozen districts in the northwestern state of Gujarat (SAM PANTHAKY)
<p>Ahmedabad (India) (AFP) – A massive locust invasion has destroyed thousands of hectares of crops in northwest India, authorities said, with some experts on Friday terming it the worst such attack in 25 years.</p><p>While officials have attempted to tackle the swarm with pesticides, farmers have deployed drums to drive away the insects, with videos showing schoolgirls banging on steel plates — due to local beliefs that loud noise repels locusts.</p><p>The invasion has damaged crops in half a dozen districts in the northwestern state of Gujarat, local government official Punamchand Parmar said Thursday.</p><p>More than 5,000 hectares (12,000 acres) have been devastated in one district alone, Parmar said.</p><p>"Nearly 25 percent of the locusts had been destroyed using pesticide. However, it will take another 4-5 days to exterminate the insects completely," he added.</p><p>"Their flight path was initially towards Pakistan but due to change in wind direction and moisture, they landed in… north Gujarat," he said.</p><p>The head of the entomology department at Gujarat’s Anand Agriculture University, P. K. Borad, told AFP: "This is the worst locust attack witnessed in Gujarat in over two decades or so."</p><p>"Such a huge swarm of locust was last seen in 1994," he added.</p><p>The state’s agriculture minister R. C. Faldu said that from Friday onwards, 100 tractors carrying pesticides would be sent to the affected villages to get rid of the insects.</p><p>But villagers were not leaving anything to chance, with many walking around the affected farms and banging drums to chase away the insects.</p><p>"We have lost everything in our village," said one man.</p><p></p>

Disclaimer: Validity of the above story is for 7 Days from original date of publishing. Source: AFP.