HYDERABAD:Sindh Agriculture Minister Ismail Rahu has revealed that more than one lac acres of crops land had been affected by locusts attack in Sindh, and the government had sprayed crops spreading at 44,404 acres.
While addressing a press conference at the office of Director General Agriculture Extension Sindh in Hyderabad, Rahu said the Sindh government had released Rs350 million for the eradication of locusts and hopefully locusts would be controlled within 10 to 15 days.
He also said that a notification would also be issued for sugarcane fixing rate within a week. The minister said the administration of all districts had been instructed to conduct a survey of locusts affected areas. After the survey, the Sindh government would fix relief for affected areas by declaring them calamity hit, he added.
He said on 29 May, the locusts arrived travelled from Iran to Afghanistan, then from Afghanistan to Balochistan and India, and finally from India to Sindh.
Rahu said as the swarms of locusts arrived in Sindh, the federal government was asked for aerial spray, but it did not took steps to control it.
Talking about the sugarcane, he said 26 sugar mills of Sindh had started crushing since 15 November, adding four sugar mills had started boiler and soon further sugar mills would also start crushing.
He said it was a wrong perception that the Sindh government was a hostage at Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA). “We will unanimously fix the official sugarcane rate, which will be more than Punjab’s rate fixed by ‘Tabdeeli Sarkar’.