Farmers fight losing battle against locusts

Nana Rukmana, The Jakarta Post, Cirebon

Locusts traveling in vast swarms have stripped 8,000 more hectares of rice fields in Cirebon regency of all vegetation, a senior government official says.

"Earlier, the locusts destroyed 1,700 hectares of rice fields in four districts, now they have attacked 8,000 more hectares in five other districts," said chief of the Cirebon administration's Plant Disease Office Sunardi on Tuesday.

The Cirebon government has distributed for free 5,500 liters of pesticide among farmers in the areas, but more pesticide is needed, he said.

"We have spent some Rp 70 million on assisting the farmers, and we can do nothing to help the rest as we are short of funds," said Sunardi.

The locusts have passed more areas as the weather has been bad over the last few weeks, another official said.

"Strong winds and frequent rainfall have hampered efforts to exterminate the locusts. The weather has surely helped the locusts breed and move quickly to other areas," said Asyikin, the chief of Cirebon Agriculture Office's climatology and irrigation section.

Asyikin was optimistic, however, that the locust situation would soon be under control as the weather would be milder in early August. "Clear weather would make it easier for the farmers to get rid of the locusts," said Asyikin.

As government officials are working on strategies to exterminate the locusts, farmers bemoan the skyrocketing price of pesticide. The price of Furudan (powder) pesticide has increased in just a few weeks from Rp 15,000 per two kilograms to Rp 27,000.

Likewise Warsal (liquid) pesticide, which earlier cost Rp 20,000 per liter, has been priced at Rp 37,000 per liter since the locust attacks.

"We can't do anything. The price of pesticide has been rising and we do not have much money to buy it," said farmer Cholik, 27, a resident of Susukan subdistrict whose one-and-a-half-hectare rice field was attacked by locusts.