CHENNAI: "All species of grasshoppers aren’t harmful to crops," a senior official in the agricultural department told Express after reports of locusts attack started doing rounds. "There are around 250 species of grasshoppers in the State, and many are part of our food chain. They help farmers by eating insects and pests. Those cited now are not harmful. We should not confuse them with locusts,” the official added.
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Saturday held a detailed discussions with Agriculture Minister R Doraikkannu, Agriculture Secretary Gagandeep Singh Bedi and officials at the secretariat. The government has constituted committees headed by Collectors in the districts that share a border with other States. Scientists from Tamil Nadu Agriculture University would be a part of this committee.
"The grasshoppers sighted in Krishnagiri has eaten only 'Erukkanchedi' (Calotropis gigantea). They did not touch the cabbage cultivated nearby. They sat on banana leaves but they did not eat the leaves," the official added. TNAU is monitoring the movement of the desert locusts on a daily basis. “They are moving towards Odisha and Punjab, and their presence is likely to continue till July,” he said.
There is a provision in the Uzhavan app to send pictures of grasshoppers to the government to check and clarify if they are, indeed, locusts. The State has sufficient stock of pesticides to deal with a crisis, if it happens to arise, the official assured.
On Friday, a team of entomologists from Regional Research Station, Paiyur, Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Professor Sundaraj, Joint Director of Agricuture Department Rajasekhar, and Joint Director of Horticulture Department Mohan Ram inspected the Neralagiri village in Krishnagiri, where the grasshoppers were sighted the previous day.