The village under attack is Kurli, which has about 500 houses and is located deep inside a forest 24km from Si... Read More

KARWAR: A village in Uttara Kannada district is facing the twin assaults of a peculiar problem: A strange species of insects has engulfed the entire area, and its unbearable foul smell has made it worse for villagers.

The village under attack is Kurli , which has about 500 houses and is located deep inside a forest 24km from Sirsi and Mundgod towns and about 430km from Bengaluru. Villagers noticed the insects a fortnight ago and their numbers were negligible. As days passed, the numbers menacingly grew out of control. First spotted on trees, the insects have now engulfed houses and schools.

"We haven't slept for many days. The insects have invaded our houses. We are scared they might enter kids' ears. Efforts to kill them have failed," said a villager.

"Many students fell ill and threw up in the classroom due to the smell from these insects," a school official said. Worried that insects may fall into food, officials have stopped mid-day meals for students.

The 'stinking insects' were spotted in the village well - the main source of drinking water to over 1,500 villagers. "Though these insects do not harm vegetation, the village is in fear. Despite requests, no health or agriculture officials have bailed us out," a villager said.

Agriculture department officials said they haven't received complaints about the Kurli insect menace. "Going by the pictures, these insects look like Udonga montana found in the northeast. These insects stink and feed on bamboo flowers. In northeast states, they appear during the blossoming of bamboo flowers ," an official said.

