DUSHANBE, April 29, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Organized by the state unitary enterprise, Fight Against Locusts, within the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), a consultative seminar to discuss measures to combat locusts took place in the village of Esanboy, Roudaki district on April 29.

This year, the government has allocated 4 million somoni for a campaign to combat locusts and specialists from the Fight Against Locusts to study 328 hectares of farmland.  “To-date, our experts have studied almost 90,000 hectares and locusts have been revealed in an area of more than 40,000 hectares,” said the source, “Some half of the locust-affected areas has already been treated.”

In the southern Khatlon province, locusts have been revealed in the area of more than 25,000 ha, which is 9 ha fewer than in the same period last year.

In Sugd province, locusts have spread over the area of more than 14,000 ha and in districts subordinate to the center, locusts have spread over the area of 12,750 ha, the source added.