There appears to be confusion and discrepancy over the number of cattle dying of foot-and-mouth disease in the State, including Mysore district. The statistics over the death of cattle and animals affected provided by the Department of Animal Husbandry and the one submitted by the Karnataka Milk Federation shows a big difference. For instance, the department’s figures, as on date, in Mysore district is 74 and the number of affected cattle is 1,637 against the KMF data of 327 and 4,015, respectively.
As a result, Minister for Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences, T.B. Jayachandra, who met the officials here, has ordered the formation of a committee, including the Deputy Director of Animal Husbandry, the Assistant Directors in the taluks, Tahsildars, panchayat development officers, to visit villages and assess ground realities and submit a report to the Minister in 15 days.
“We will go to villages, conduct mahazar and, if necessary, retrieve carcasses to verify the number of deaths,” Deputy Director of the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Department, Mysore, Devadas, told The Hindu .
Dr. Devadas said that the situation is under control in the district. As many as 74 deaths have occurred in the district — 35 in T. Narsipur taluk, 21 in K.R. Nagar taluk, 15 in Mysore taluk and three in Hunsur taluk. The statistics provided by the KMF in other districts too showed high numbers with regard to affected animals and those that died. Of the 5,60,450 head of cattle in the district, 5,01,084 have been vaccinated since September 1, after the outbreak of the disease. The department hoped to achieve 100 per cent coverage in another 15 days, he said.
As far as vaccination is concerned, 98 per cent of head of cattle have been covered in Hunsur taluk, 94 per cent in Mysore taluk, 92 per cent in Nanjangud and H.D. Kote taluks, 88 per cent in Periyapatna taluk, 87 per cent in K.R. Nagar taluk and 77 per cent in T. Narsipur taluk.
The department has taken steps to vaccinate cattle for haemorrhagic septicaemia simultaneously as post-mortem in some cases had revealed the cause of death as “haemorrhagic septicaemia”, Dr. Devadas said. More than 22,000 head of cattle had been administered haemorrhagic septicaemia vaccine. As many as 124 villages in Mysore district had reported cases of foot-and-mouth disease, Dr. Devadas confirmed.
