Though locust swarms have invaded parts of neighbouring Maharashtra, the chances of them entering Karnataka are very low, according to Karnataka Agriculture Minister B.C. Patil.

Mr. Patil, who held a meeting with officials concerned as well as experts on the precautionary measures to be taken, appealed to farmers not to panic.

Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru on Thursday, Mr. Patil pointed out that locust swarms were nearly 450 km away from the State border of Bidar. They mostly depend on wind to travel, and the weather forecast had indicated that the wind direction may change towards north-east within a couple of days. This would mean that these insects would not be flying towards Karnataka from Maharashtra.

The Minister said Standard Operating Procedures (SoP) too had been prepared to handle them even if the wind direction did not change, paving the way for the entry of locust swarms into the State.

As per SoPs, the farmers were supposed to spray neem-based insecticides or Chlorpyrifos and lambda-cyhalothrin insecticides. He said the government had made arrangements for fire engines, tractor-operated sprayers and drones for the effective spray of insecticides to control them.

Listing the precautionary measures being taken, he said the State Agriculture Commissioner was getting information on an hourly basis from his Maharashtra counterpart on the movement of locust swarms. District and State-level teams had been formed to tackle the swarms. The State team had been asked to visit vulnerable districts such as Bidar, Kalaburagi, Yadgir and Koppal to instil confidence among farmers and create awareness among them about the measures to be taken to contain the swarms if they invade.

Mr. Patil said the government had decided to earmark 25 per cent of funds from the State disaster fund to handle the locust menace.

Locust swarms are currently sweeping across several States in the western & northwestern parts of the country including Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.