Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday wrote to Union Minister of Animal Husbandry Dairying and Fisheries Parshottam Rupala, requesting him to expedite the supply of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine for cattle to the State.
The next round of FMD vaccinations in Tamil Nadu is due in September 2022. The State has constantly been requesting the Government of India to supply 90 lakh vaccine doses in a single instalment since June 2022, but was still waiting to receive the vaccine doses, the letter noted.
The timely availability of vaccines was essential to maintain herd immunity among the susceptible cattle population and to prevent the occurrence of FMD and subsequent economic losses to the farmers. The State has vaccinated all eligible cattle at six-month intervals from 2011 till 2019. The vaccines cater to approximately 94 lakh cattle and buffaloes in Tamil Nadu.
The Chief Minister noted that even during the previous round of vaccinations in September 2021, the supply of vaccine doses was staggered. Tamil Nadu could complete the vaccination only in six months due to this staggered supply, which was not in line with the FMD vaccination protocol, he said.
He sought the Union Minister’s intervention to expedite the supply of FMD vaccines to Tamil Nadu, so that the outbreak of FMD and the consequent economic hardship to the farmers could be averted.
