<p>The Delhi government has asked authorities concerned to spray insecticides and pesticides on standing crops, vegetation, gardens and orchards to prevent a probable attack of desert locusts in Delhi.</p>.<p>Agriculture Department Joint Director A P Saini in an advisory issued on Wednesday asked the authorities to organise awareness programmes for public and farmers to prevent the attack of locusts in the national capital.</p>.<p>"As the swarm of locusts flies in daytime, and rests during the night, it should not be allowed to rest at night," the advisory read.</p>.<p>It asked the authorities to carry out spraying of pesticides chlorpyrifos and malathion.</p>.<p>Also, Delhi's forest department is considering covering the saplings in its nurseries with polythene to protect them against the desert locust attack.</p>.<p>"It is not possible to cover the trees. We will at least cover the saplings in the nurseries," Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Ishwar Singh said.</p>.<p>"Covering plants with polythene can also be counter-productive during this heat. So, we will do this only when we know for sure that the swarm of locusts is headed towards Delhi," the official said.</p>.<p>Singh said that in a city like Delhi, spraying of chemicals can be detrimental for environment.</p>.<p>"If we spray the vegetation, trees and plants with chemical in anticipation of a locust attack, we should also consider how dangerous it will be for the environment," he said.</p>.<p>There are 14 lakh saplings in 14 government nurseries across Delhi, Singh said.</p>.<p>India is battling the worst desert locust outbreak in recent times. The crop-destroying swarms first attacked Rajasthan and have now spread to Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.</p>.<p>According to experts, broadly four species of locusts are found in India – desert locust, migratory locust, Bombay locust and tree locust. The desert locust is considered the most destructive.</p>.<p>It multiplies very rapidly and is capable of covering 150 kilometers in a day.</p>.<p>This insect, a type of a grasshopper, can eat more than its body weight. A one square kilometer of locust swarm containing around 40 million locusts can in a day eat as much food as 35,000 people.</p>.<p>Experts blame the growing menace of desert locusts on climate change. They say breeding of locusts is directly related to soil moisture and food availabili</p>
<p>The Delhi government has asked authorities concerned to spray insecticides and pesticides on standing crops, vegetation, gardens and orchards to prevent a probable attack of desert locusts in Delhi.</p>.<p>Agriculture Department Joint Director A P Saini in an advisory issued on Wednesday asked the authorities to organise awareness programmes for public and farmers to prevent the attack of locusts in the national capital.</p>.<p>"As the swarm of locusts flies in daytime, and rests during the night, it should not be allowed to rest at night," the advisory read.</p>.<p>It asked the authorities to carry out spraying of pesticides chlorpyrifos and malathion.</p>.<p>Also, Delhi's forest department is considering covering the saplings in its nurseries with polythene to protect them against the desert locust attack.</p>.<p>"It is not possible to cover the trees. We will at least cover the saplings in the nurseries," Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Ishwar Singh said.</p>.<p>"Covering plants with polythene can also be counter-productive during this heat. So, we will do this only when we know for sure that the swarm of locusts is headed towards Delhi," the official said.</p>.<p>Singh said that in a city like Delhi, spraying of chemicals can be detrimental for environment.</p>.<p>"If we spray the vegetation, trees and plants with chemical in anticipation of a locust attack, we should also consider how dangerous it will be for the environment," he said.</p>.<p>There are 14 lakh saplings in 14 government nurseries across Delhi, Singh said.</p>.<p>India is battling the worst desert locust outbreak in recent times. The crop-destroying swarms first attacked Rajasthan and have now spread to Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.</p>.<p>According to experts, broadly four species of locusts are found in India – desert locust, migratory locust, Bombay locust and tree locust. The desert locust is considered the most destructive.</p>.<p>It multiplies very rapidly and is capable of covering 150 kilometers in a day.</p>.<p>This insect, a type of a grasshopper, can eat more than its body weight. A one square kilometer of locust swarm containing around 40 million locusts can in a day eat as much food as 35,000 people.</p>.<p>Experts blame the growing menace of desert locusts on climate change. They say breeding of locusts is directly related to soil moisture and food availabili</p>