Daily Times

KARACHI: Six employees have died due to COVID-19 and heart attack while on duty to eradicate locusts in Sindh. Four employees of the Agriculture Department have died due to the corona Virus and two due to heart attack. Two deputy directors including an agriculture officer and three field assistants died during the campaign against Locusts.

While talking to the media Provincial Minister for Agriculture Ismail Rahu stated that six employees of the Agriculture Department have died in the line of duty due to COVID-19 and heart attack. What’s more, the employees continued their work even amid the spread of the deadly Coronavirus.

As per details, the agriculture department has also sent a summary to the Sindh chief minister to give martyrs status to those who lost their lives during Coronavirus. All the employees participating in the anti locusts spray campaign will be given an honorarium.

Ismail Rahu said that the department has also recommended giving allowances to 580 officers and employees who have been working day and night in the campaign to eradicate locusts. It is recommended to pay Three Million rupees to the families of martyrs.

The provincial minister said that the employees of the agriculture department have sacrificed their lives for the eradication of locusts from Sindh. With the timely action of the Sindh government, Sindh is free from locusts today. 293,813 acres were sprayed in Sindh.

He said that 26 million 18 thousand 440 acres of agricultural land has been surveyed in Sindh.
The Agriculture Minister said that locusts were present in 22 districts of Sindh where ground operations have been carried out to eradicate them.

He added that in the next few weeks, locusts are expected to attack again as locusts would travel from Rajasthan to Sindh and then Balochistan and Iran.