Lucknow 25 Aug : More than 5 000 cattle have been affected by the disease that causes lumpy skin and 30 have died due to it up to now in eight districts of Uttar Pradesh including Meerut, Baghpat, Hapur, Bulandshahr, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, and Bijnor.Farmers are being advised to keep animals suffering from healthy ones and ensure that there is no fog in sheds for animals.
According to veterinarians Animals affected by the disease are afflicted with the flu and then develop skin rashes that turn into cuts after a certain period of time.It takes between 2 and three weeks to recover from the condition.
Farmers are concerned about the increasing instances of the illness and have accused authorities of not doing enough to prevent the disease.
Additional Director Animal Husbandry, Meerut division, Brajveer Singh said all precautionary measures are being implemented to control the spread of the disease.
He declared that it was an infectious disease, and teams were formed at the block levels in each district of the division in order to inform farmers on how to take precautionary measures.
“Teams have instructed farmers to confine sick animals from healthy ones and ensure their sheds are kept clean” said Singh and added that the government of the state had banned trading in animals at fairs as well as the transportation of animals from states bordering them.
Singh said that more than 300 animals have been affected in the division, and at minimum three of them died in Bulandshahr district all by themselves.He stated that the mortality rate is very low.
District officials have submitted their requirements for vaccinations to the state government.”We are hoping that we will receive vaccines within the next few days,” said Singh.
With 66 new instances of the disease being reported the amount of cases in Meerut district has risen to 223.
Chief veterinarian in the district Akhilesh Garg said that there was no lumpy disease-related deaths were confirmed in the district, and that 40 affected animals had been cured in the last few days.
The veterinary officer in Baghpat Rakesh Chandra said that the transport of animals from the border of Haryana was stopped and teams in were tracing animals suffering from the disease.He stated that 32 animals in the district were affected by the disease.
According to reports at least 6 of the more than 2000 animals affected died in Muzaffarnagar district.22 out of more than 2500 sick animals died in Saharanpur four out of 582 affected animals died in Shamli and more than 100 animals were sick from the virus in Nangla as well as Najibabad regions of Bijnor.
Yogesh Sharma District president of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) in Muzaffarnagar, said that the number of sick animals was far greater than the official figures.
He said officials of the department of animal husbandry of not doing enough to fight the disease.
He said that farmers took their own steps to safeguard their animals.
amita/shs
