Guwahati: Three states in the Northeast, namely Mizoram, Sikkim and Assam, are seeing an outbreak of African Swine Fever (ASF) cases – a highly contagious viral disease affecting pigs.
Northeastern states consume about 70 per cent of the country’s total domestic pork production.
In Mizoram, a total of 526 pigs have died this year due to ASF, while there have been 111 pig mortalities due to a suspected case of the illness, according to data from the state’s Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department.
Meanwhile, Sikkim has reported a total of 115 pig deaths, which account for suspected ASF cases as well, according to Zeruiah Bhutia, joint director at the Sikkim Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services.
Assam reported two pig deaths due to ASF in January and March this year, an official with the Directorate of Animal Husbandry & Veterinary confirmed.
States restricting entry of pigs, pork products
The recent outbreak comes only a few months after Mizoram witnessed a decline in the spate of ASF cases. Last year, over 33,000 pigs died in Mizoram due to ASF.
An official with the Mizoram Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department, who didn’t wish to be named, told ThePrint, “Last year, all 11 districts in the state reported cases. From last December, there was a decline and no ASF cases were reported. Then we started seeing positive cases beginning March this year.”
According to the state department’s data, a maximum of these cases (376) were reported in the Aizawl district, while other confirmed cases were reported from Champai, Lunglei and Saitual districts.
According to the official from the Mizoram animal husbandry department, the outbreak occurred last year as a result of infected pigs being imported from Bangladesh.
“Some people had imported pigs during the Covid period, despite restrictions, given the porous borders…Currently, our state government has issued a prohibition on the import of pig and pork products from ASF-affected states and neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Myanmar where ASF is endemic,” he said.
In Sikkim, the government has issued area-specific notifications in the Namchi, Gangtok, Pakyong and Mangan districts restricting the entry of live pigs and pig products where ASF has been reported.
“We have sent, altogether, 81 serum samples to NIHSAD (National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases) in Bhopal. Of them, 29 samples have tested positive,” Bhutia said and added, “This is the first time that Sikkim is ASF seeing cases.”
In Assam, the official quoted above said that similar area-specific restrictions have also been imposed in and around the epicenter of the outbreak, in the state’s Goalpara and Charaideo districts.
Earlier this year, there were also reports of an ASF outbreak in some parts of Nagaland.
In the last two years, outbreaks were also seen in Assam (where 38,700 pigs died over 18 months), Meghalaya (where 300 pigs died) and across districts of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Tripura.
Pig farming major source of income
A highly contagious hemorrhagic viral disease, ASF has a mortality rate of 100 per cent.
According to the 2019 livestock census, of the 90.6 lakh pigs in the country, Assam accounts for over 24 [lakh], Mizoram for over 25 lakh, Sikkim for over 39,000 and Mizoram over 5.5 lakh. Other Northeastern states are also major hubs of pork production..
Pig farming is a source of income for thousands of farmers in these states. The ASF outbreak in Mizoram last year had led to losses of around Rs 60.82 crore.
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