Authorities have planned to control the use of flunixin, another yet-to-be-banned non-steroidal anti-inflammatory veterinary drug (NSAID) in the Nilgiris, Erode and Coimbatore after recent studies in other parts of the world point to the drug being responsible for the death of other old world vultures.
The Directorate of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services, in its recent order, did not announce an outright ban on the use of flunixin for veterinary treatment, but did direct the Regional Joint Directors of the Animal Husbandry department in Coimbatore, Erode and the Nilgiris to “restrict usage of flunixin”. It suggested usage of meloxicam as an alternative. The existing stock of flunixin is to be redistributed to other districts, where the restrictions are not in place.
S. Bharathidasan, secretary of Arulagam, a non-government organisation working on protecting the last remaining population of vultures in the region, said the studies in Spain and Italy on specimens of dead vultures found that the carcasses of the critically endangered birds had traces of flunixin, showing that flunixin might have the same effect on vultures as did the banned NSAID - diclofenac, the use of which led to 90 % of vultures in Asia being wiped out over the course of a few decades.
Diclofenac, like other NSAIDs, is usually used to treat cattle. When these cattle die, the vultures that feed on the carcasses die of renal failure from diclofenac poisoning, Forest Department officials explained.
“We welcome the restriction on the use of flunixin in these regions, where the critically endangered White-rumped vulture, Asian king vulture, Egyption vulture and long-billed vulture are seen,” said Mr. Bharathidasan, who urged the government to ban the drug throughout the State. “There are existing, safer drugs such as meloxicam and tolfenamic acid that can be used to treat cattle,” he said. The only way to protect the vulture population was to eliminate the emerging threats to their survival, he added.
When contacted, Tamil Nadu Chief Wildlife Warden, Sanjay Kumar Srivastava, said the Forest Department had communicated to the Collectors of the three districts the directions to control the use of flunixin. “The decision was taken as these three districts are key vulture habitats,” said Mr. Srivastava.
The Animal Husbandry department said that flunixin was only rarely used in veterinary treatments in the Nilgiris, and it was checking pre-existing stocks of the drug which would be redistributed to dispensaries in other districts.
