Delhi government to purchase 60,000 doses of goat pox vaccine

To stop the spread of lumpy skin condition, the Delhi government will buy 60,000 doses of the goat pox vaccine to immunise healthy livestock in the city.

These vaccination doses will be given out without charge.

Gopal Rai, the development minister, reported on Saturday that 173 cases of lumpy skin disease in cattle had been discovered in Delhi, the most of them in the southwest region.

The Delhi government has not previously acknowledged occurrences of lumpy skin disease in the city.

Although no death has been reported so far, a senior official said there has been no increase in the cases since last evening.

The official told the news agency PTI that Delhi has a cattle population of 80,000 and the central government which is finalising the rate contract with the supplier has assured that 60,000 doses will reach us soon.

“We had a meeting with officials of the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying on Saturday and requested them to make the vaccine available as soon as possible,” the official said.

The Uttarkashi strain of the goat pox virus will be used in the government’s ring vaccination approach, which will provide healthy livestock in a 5-kilometer radius of the affected areas.

An infectious viral disease known as lumpy skin disease infects cattle and is transmitted through direct contact with mosquitoes, flies, lice, wasps, and other flying insects as well as tainted food and water. It cannot be transmitted from livestock to people.

High fever, decreased milk supply, skin nodules, appetite loss, increased nasal discharge, and watery eyes are just a few of the symptoms.

The disease has reportedly expanded to Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh, where it has claimed the lives of more than 57,000 cattle.

The Goyla dairy region, the Rewla Khanpur area, Ghumanhera, and Najafgarh areas of Delhi have seen the most lumpy skin disease instances.

In order to gather samples, the Delhi government has put up 11 rapid reaction teams as well as two mobile veterinary clinics. Four teams will educate the public about the infection.

The city government has also established a dedicated control room with a disease-related helpline number of 8287848586.

For stray cattle with lumpy skin disease, an isolation ward has been put up in southwest Delhi’s Rewla Khanpur Gau Sadan, according to Rai.

Around 4,500 cows can fit in the cow shelter. Away from healthy animals, the isolation ward has been established, and mosquito nets have been put in place.

Due to the low and controllable caseload, experts said it is unlikely that the disease will reach the proportions observed in other states in Delhi.

According to them, the virus only causes one to two percent of cattle to die in a given year.

The high fatality rate in Rajasthan and Gujarat may be a result of the cattle’s ill health and the emergence of secondary illnesses.

(With inputs from PTI)

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