The culling of pigs at a farm at Tavinhal in Wayanad district where two cases of African Swine Fever have been confirmed was completed on Monday night.
A 10-member team consisting of veterinarians and two experts in culling from Bengaluru culled as many as 360 pigs in the farm by 9 p.m., S. Dayal, senior veterinary surgeon, Mananthavady Veterinary Hospital, told The Hindu.
The team commenced the culling operation around 10 p.m. on Sunday. The carcasses were buried in five pits about 80 m away from the farm.
The culling operation at three pig farms near Kaniyaram in Mananthavady municipality where the first case of African Swine Fever was reported would begin on Wednesday, said Dr. Dayal, who is coordinating the operations.
As many as 48 pigs died of the disease at a farm in the area around one month ago.
The disease was confirmed five days ago after samples from two pig farms at Mananthavady and Kattimoola tested positive at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal. The Wayanad district administration declared a 1-km radius of the disease-affected areas as “infection zones” and restricted entry there.
“Since the disease does not have any specific treatment or vaccine, preventive measures are important,” said Dr. Dayal, adding that as many as 80 pigs in those farms had to be culled as per the Central government’s guidelines.
Meanwhile, district panchayat president Samshad Marakkar urged the State government to ensure fair compensation to the farmers for their loss in a time-bound manner.
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