By Sujit Chakraborty
Even as the Northeast is battling the Covid-19 pandemic, a few states are also witnessing an outbreak of the African Swine Fever (ASF). After Mizoram witnessed the ASF outbreak, now cases have been reported in Tripura where a large number of pigs have died in a government farm in Kanchanpur, officials said on Wednesday.
When Mizoram was severely battling with Covid-19 pandemic, the ASF since March this year has killed over 28,000 pigs in all the 11 districts of Mizoram, which shares borders with Tripura, Assam, Manipur besides Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Animal disease expert Mrinal Dutta told IANS that the outbreak of ASF in limited spheres had been reported earlier this year in most of the Northeastern states, including Assam and Meghalaya besides neighbouring countries Myanmar and Bhutan.
Tripura’s Animal Resources Development Department (ARDD) Director K. Sasikumar said some samples of ASF-hit pigs tested positive in the Guwahati based North Eastern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. He said that so far 160 pigs have died at the government-run Exotic Pig Breeding Farm in Kanchanpur and the ASF not yet spread in the adjoining villages due to the strict surveillance of the department officials and doctors.
“A team of veterinary doctors and experts are now camping in Kanchanpur (bordering Mizoram) and they in collaboration with the local officials and volunteers have so far culled 37 pigs and a maximum surveillance is being done to prevent the spread of the disease in the adjoining sub-divisions,” Sasikumar told IANS.
He said that the infectious disease might have spread to northern Tripura’s Kanchanpur from adjoining Mizoram. The official said that the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Diseases in Animals Act, 2009 has been enforced in Kanchanpur subdivision and all-out preventive measures have been undertaken.
“Those people who violate the provisions of the act, he or they would be punished with imprisonment and fine. Transportation and trading of pigs to and from Kanchanpur have been banned,” the ARDD Director said.
In Mizoram, Animal Husbandry and Veterinary (AH & Vety) Department spokesman Hmingtea said that after the outbreak of the ASF in Mizoram in March this year so far over 28,000 pigs have died in all the 11 districts and over 11,000 pigs were culled.
The outbreak of the ASF has caused a financial loss to the tune of over Rs 230 crore so far, the official told IANS, adding that in a few of the districts’s the disease is under control and in some districts it is still prevailing.
He said that in mid-March, the first pig death was detected at Lungsen village in south Mizoram’s Lunglei district. The villagers had reported that the pigs were imported from adjoining Bangladesh.
When the samples of the dead pigs were sent to the Bhopal-based National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases, it was confirmed that the pigs died due to ASF.
According to the officials of the AH & Vety, the ASF outbreak has been reported in at least 250 villages in all 11 districts across the state.
According to experts, the outbreak may have been caused by pigs or pork imported from neighbouring Myanmar, Bangladesh and the adjoining state of Meghalaya.
The Northeast region’s annual pork business is worth around Rs 8,000-10,000 crore, with Assam being the largest supplier. Pork is one of the most common and popular meats consumed by the tribals and non-tribals in the region.
According to some experts, humans don’t get infected by ASF, which was first detected in 1921 in Kenya. However, they could be the carriers of the virus.
No vaccine is available for the virus till date.
Outbreaks of various diseases, including ASF and foot-and-mouth disease among animals, mostly livestock, occur in different states of the Northeastern region almost every year.
After the outbreak, the Northeastern states have sounded high alert and asked people, especially owners of piggeries, to refrain from bringing pigs and piglets from other states and neighbouring countries, especially from Myanmar.
The Central government’s advisory said that ASF is a highly contagious disease of pigs — both domestic and wild and the mortality range may be as high as 100 per cent.
“As the disease is already prevalent in China, and India has long borders with China, Myanmar and Nepal, therefore, the bordering Indian states need to remain alert on the movement of live pigs and pork products into their territory. In this regard, the people in the border areas, especially in the Northeast, require to be adequately sensitized,” the advisory said.
The outbreaks of various diseases including ASF, Foot-and-Mouth among the animals, mostly livestock, have occurred in different states of the northeast region almost every year.
(Sujit Chakraborty can be contacted at sujit.c@ians.in)
