Locust attack badly-timed serious infestation: Environment min official

With a locust outbreak ravaging parts of western India, a Union Environment Ministry official Tuesday said it was a very badly-timed "serious infestation" that has occurred when the country is already in the middle of a pandemic.

Soumitra Dasgupta, Inspector General, Wildlife, Ministry of Environment said it is the desert locust which has attacked India in huge numbers and may lead to crop losses.

"Locusts are a regular feature in the country but this attack is huge," Dasgupta told PTI.

Locust is a large, mainly tropical grasshopper, with strong powers of flight and it migrates in vast swarms which cause extensive damage to