1.84 lakh cattle vaccinated against lumpy skin disease, says Punjab official

The Punjab officials said vaccination drive has been intensified adhering to the directions of chief minister Bhagwant Mann and vaccination is being carried out by the veterinary staff even during the holidays. He said that out of the 2.34 lakh doses received earlier, more than 1.84 lakh doses have already been administered to cattle

Over 1.84 lakh cattle have been vaccinated for the prevention of lumpy skin disease so far by the animal husbandry department of Punjab. Principal secretary, animal husbandry department, Vikas Pratap said that the third lot of 83,000 doses of Goat Pox vaccine has been distributed among the districts.

A cow infected with lumpy skin disease, in a cow shed in Bathinda, Punjab. (HT File)

He said that vaccination drive has been intensified adhering to the directions of chief minister Bhagwant Mann and vaccination is being carried out by the veterinary staff even during the holidays. He said that out of the 2.34 lakh doses received earlier, more than 1.84 lakh doses have already been administered to cattle. Besides this, five veterinary officers from Punjab veterinary vaccine institute, Ludhiana have also been deputed in different districts. Earlier, veterinary officers of head office Mohali were also deployed in the districts till August 31. The principal secretary said that on the instructions of the chief minister, an amount of ₹1 crore is being transferred by the rural development and panchayat department to the animal husbandry department, which will be disbursed to the districts for necessary medicines and food.

Vet varsity students roped-in to mitigate problem

Ludhiana Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (GADVASU) has decided to depute 179 veterinary students to work closely with the animal husbandry department for controlling lumpy skin disease (LSD) in cattle. The decision to depute the students in different districts across Punjab was taken in a meeting in the presence of the finance minister and animal husbandry minister of the state.