Efforts on to tackle foot-&-mouth disease outbreak at Siluk

OUR CORRESPONDENT

ITANAGAR, July 18: With reported outbreak of Foot & Mouth Disease (FMD) which so far claimed over 20 mithuns and cows at Siluk Village in East Siang district, the veterinary department of the district has engaged all the manpower along with medicines and logistics to tackle the outbreak of the disease in war footing.

The district veterinary officer (DVO) Dr J Panor has pressed all the available manpower in the district according to the direction of Animal Husbandry, Veterinary & Dairy Development Minister Dr Mohesh Chai and Secretary Bidol Tayeng, an official report informed. As per the information received, the outbreak haS affected about 300 cattle which were not vaccinated. “Despite THE department’s effort to cover the animals in the area by vaccination during the pre-monsoon vaccination programme, the same could not be carried out ‘due to lack of cooperation by villagers’,” the report said.

However, a team of veterinary doctors led by Dr Panor is camping in the affected village and providing all possible veterinary aid to the affected livestock owners and is collecting necessary samples to determine the types of virus involved in the outbreak.

An awareness camp is also being planned to educate the villagers regarding the menace of FMD, the report added.