Lumpy skin disease infects over 15,000 cattle in MP

MP government has announced several measures including isolation of the infected animnals to prevent the spread of the disease.

Madhya Pradesh government has banned transportation of bovines, their sale and mingling in animal fairs and mating without a test for the next two months as a viral disease - lumpy skin disease - has affected at least 15,000 such animals in at least 10 districts of the state bordering Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. Measures are being taken to contain the spread of the disease, government officials said.

Government has asked owners of bovines to ensure that the infected animals are isolated and not allowed to graze in open grounds and mate untill treated. (HT Photo)

The animal husbandry department and Nanaji Deshmukh Veterinary Science University, Jabalpur, has ordered isolation of infected bovines for 12-14 days and also put a ban on their inter-state and intra-state transportation, as per officials.

Animal husbandry department’s additional chief secretary, JN Kansotia, said, “Spread of the virus was limited to some districts but we have issued instructions to district officers of animal husbandry department of all the districts to contain the disease.”

Nanaji Deshmukh Veterinary Science University, Jabalpur, dean RK Sharma said, “The disease is spreading very fast due to four main factors- contact, secretion of dung and urine, flies and mating with affected bovines. Isolation and proper medication are the only ways to contain the disease.”

“The first case was reported in Anuppur in the second week of August when some cows showed the symptoms of the viral disease. The tested samples from Anuppur confirmed the presence of the virus from family Poxviridae which causes lumpy skin disease,” said PK Solnaki, a senior veterinary surgeon of animal husbandry department, appointed as nodal officer for disease containment efforts.

“In just one week, we came to know that it had spread to at least six districts. In less than one month, it spread to more than 10 districts and affected over 15,000 cattle-- mainly domestic. The worst affected district is Balaghat where 8700 cases were reported,” said Solanki.

“The local municipal bodies and panchayat officials of all the 52 districts have been asked to remain on alert and ensure isolation of stray cows if found infected. Owners of bovines have been asked to make a separate shed for infected ones and not leave the infected ones for grazing in an open ground,” said the officer.

Solanki says that the ban on organising animal fairs, which were on hold due to Covid-19, will continue for the next two months. The bovine owners have also been asked to mate their animals only after testing.

To create awareness among people and to provide medicines to infected bovines, camps are being organized in more than 500 villages of 10 districts of east and south east of MP, said JN Kansotia.

Lumpy Skin Disease or the LSD was first reported in Zambia in 1929. Over the next 85 years, it steadily spread throughout the majority of Africa and into the middle-east. In 2015, it entered mainland Europe in Greece and spread to Russia. In 2019, the first known LSD infection in India was reported from Odisha. The disease then reached MP from Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. It normally spreads through insects or ticks.

“The disease has a very rare chance of mortality but the morbidity rate is very high. It causes secretion of milk in affected cows and buffalos. There is no report of transmission of the disease from animals to humans so far,” said RK Sharma, dean of the university.