Uttarakhand confirms cases of African Swine Fever

After the north-eastern states of Assam, Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura, Uttarakhand has now reported cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) which causes fever, nausea and diarrhoea in pigs.

This disease is highly communicable and has no vaccine. The government has urged residents to avoid having pork for at least the next one week.

Over the last week, authorities were alerted to around 200 pig deaths in cities like Dehradun, Kotdwar, Chamoli and Muni ki Reti (in Tehri Garhwal district).

Dr R Rajesh Kumar, District Magistrate of Dehradun district has informed that as a result of confirmation of African Swine Fever disease in boar animals under Rishikesh Municipal Corporation area of Dehradun district. For the prevention of disease, the area has been divided into three parts viz. Infected Zone, Surveillance Zone, Disease Free Zone.

The District Magistrate said that the disease has been confirmed in the Rishikesh Municipal Corporation area. "A radius of one kilometre has been declared as an infected zone. There is a complete ban on pig meat/pig meat shops/pig traffic in this area. Instructions have been given to take measures to prevent infected area and local disinfection, fumigation and ticks and to keep sick animals separate from healthy animals," he said.

Instructions have been given to dispose of the carcinogens in a scientific manner while culling the pigs coming into the infected zone, the official said.

The official data informed that the surveillance zone is an area falling within a radius of 10 kilometres from the infected zone.

In this area also, the movement of pigs will be completely prohibited and instructions have been given to get samples of pigs from the said area every 15 days and send them to the ICAR-NISHAD Bhopal laboratory for testing.

Further, the entire area of Dehradun district outside the surveillance zone has been declared as a Disease Free Zone. "No pig animal will be sent or brought to any other area in the said area. That is, the movement of pigs and animals will be completely banned. The said restrictions will remain in force for the next two months or till the information of disease outbreak in the area becomes zero, whichever is later," the data said.

Instances of ASF first emerged in India in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in May 2020.

( With inputs from ANI )