Uzbekistan Locust Swarms Under Control, Officials Say

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Viral videos of locust swarms blanketing roads in western Uzbekistan triggered a public response from authorities this week — but officials are urging calm, insisting the phenomenon is seasonal and firmly under control.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations (MChS) stepped in to address footage circulating on social media showing dense insect swarms along the A-380 highway in the Bukhara region, one of the country's major east-west arteries.

The ministry characterized the event as an annual seasonal locust migration, stressing that it remains localized and has caused no damage to agricultural land or crops in the affected areas. Rescue units and other agencies within Uzbekistan's national emergency prevention and response system are maintaining continuous monitoring of the situation, officials said.

The reassurance comes amid a broader, coordinated anti-locust campaign that spans multiple government bodies. Specialists from MChS work alongside the Agency for Plant Quarantine and Protection and other agencies to conduct large-scale preventive and active chemical treatment operations each year.

The scale of this year's effort is significant: chemical treatment is planned across 651,800 hectares in 2026. Earlier in the season, locust hatching was recorded as far back as late March across four southern and central regions — Kashkadarya, Surkhandarya, Samarkand, and Jizzakh — with approximately 700 specialists deployed to conduct protective operations at that stage.

Citizens who spot new locust outbreaks are urged to report them via the short hotline number 1288 or by calling 71 202 10 00.