Locusts, snails ruin paddy fields

PURWOKERTO, Central Java: Over 200 hectares of paddy fields in 10 subdistricts in the regencies of Banyumas and Cilacap, Central Java, are now under the devastating attack of locusts and snails, an official said yesterday.

JB Soedarmo of the Banyumas agricultural office said the subdistricts affected by the pests were Kebasen, Somagede, Tambak, Sumpiuh, Kemranjen, Sidareja, Kesugian, Nusawungu, Adipala and Maos.

"These two pests are viciously attacking the paddy fields like a flash of light," Soedarmo told The Jakarta Post, adding that the only effective weapon against such pests was pesticide. (45)