Staff Reporter
Guwahati: To prevent, control and eradicate African Swine Fever in Assam, the state government has instructed the Veterinary Department to monitor and check trucks carrying pigs from other states to NE states through Assam at the entry and exit points in the state.
According to official sources, the Secretary, Veterinary Department has issued an SOP to control the menace of African Swine Fever (ASF), which has spread to many areas in the state, and hundreds of pigs have already been culled. The vehicles carrying the live pigs will be checked at the state border checkposts—Srirampur, Boxirhat, Byrnihat, and Amguri—at the time of entry. Teams comprising veterinarians, along with personnel of the police and transport department, will check the vehicles.
As per the SOP, each truck should possess an ASF-free certificate from laboratories authorised by the Government of India, and each consignment must have a health certificate for each of the animals, issued by competent authorities; a record of vaccination against classical swine fever and deworming; and ensure that the transit pigs originated from ASF-free zones.
The vehicles should have documents like the source and destination points of animals; the purpose of transport, the number of animals transported; details of the sender, transporter and receiver, etc.
When any truck approaches the state, the pigs will be checked just after arrival at the border checkpost; pigs showing symptoms of disease or a 2% random sample will be tested with ASF Rapid Detection Kit for the presence of the ASF virus; if the sample tests positive for the virus, then the animals will be isolated and quarantined for further testing through RTCPR in the Khanapara Veterinary Hospital; if the samples test positive in the RTCPR test, then all the pigs of the consignment will be culled and buried as per protocol. No culling compensation will be given to the supplier or consignee.
Moreover, that each vehicle carrying consignment of pigs will have to be sanitised at the border entry point so that the disease does not spread; movement of any vehicle carrying live pigs during the night within Assam will not be permitted; the transit animals shall not be disembarked in any place for any purpose within Assam; respective state government of the source of live animals should be intimated in writing by the party concerned and the said state government should inform the Government of Assam that consignment of ASF-free live pigs are to be transported through Assam; and monthly record of vehicles transported through the check post will be communicated to the Director, Veterinary Department.
The SOP may be reviewed for mid-course correction as and when required in order to combat ASF in the state.
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