Panic in Anantnag district over death of cows, sick cattle

Panic in Anantnag district over death of cows, sick cattle

Anantnag: Panic has spread in Anantnag district in south Kashmir, in rural areas in particular, as hundreds of bovine animals have fallen sick and at least half a dozen cows have died due to Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD), which is prevalent across the country at present.
The news of these deaths has come just a week after the J&K administration banned the import and inter-district transportation of bovine animals to contain the spread of this disease.
Sources told Kashmir Reader that at least six cows have died within a few days in Kamad area of Anantnag district, while more than 50 others have fallen sick with symptoms of this deadly disease.
“This cow was my only source of income and yielded around 20 litres of milk every day. We are devastated,” said Ghulam Muhammad Mir, a resident of Kamad area. “The cow had fever and other symptoms of the disease and could not survive despite much treatment,” he added.
Mir said that his cow was worth more than Rs 90,000.
Another resident, Master Ghulam Nabi Sheikh, said that his cow yielded 16 to 20 liters of milk every day. “The disease is everywhere in the village. Almost every cow I have seen in the last three to four days is sick,” Sheikh said.
Dozens of cows have fallen sick in Khurbatpora, Naikpora, Zaldoora, Kabamarg, and some adjoining villages in Dialgam area of Anantnag district. “Many have died but there is a lack of comprehensive data on the deaths as of now,” a source in the Animal Husbandry department said.
He said that other affected villages include Pushiwara, Harnag, Bohram Shah, Batpora, Seepin, Muniward, and others. “It will need a comprehensive survey to determine the number of dead and sick animals in these villages,” the source in the department said.
Kashmir Reader tried talking to Deputy Commissioner Anantnag, Basharat Qayoom, and the district animal husbandry officer, Nisar Ahmad Khan, to know what further measures the administration has taken to contain the spread of the disease and for the treatment of the sick animals. None of them attended the repeated calls made by this reporter.
Lumpy Skin Disease is a viral infection caused by the Lumpy Skin Disease Virus (LSDV). The infection has affected bovine animals in more than ten states and union territories thus far.
More than 75,000 animals have been killed by the virus so far. Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that the center and the states were working together to curb the spread of this virus, which has emerged as a challenge for the dairy sector.

A contagious disease
The disease originated in Zambia in 1929 and spread to most African nations subsequently.
More recently it originated in Bangladesh in 2019 and has spread through Asia and the Middle East in the recent past. The first case in India was reported around the same time it was reported in Bangladesh – in West Bengal and Odisha.
It is a contagious viral disease affecting mostly cattle. It is transmitted by insects, including certain kinds of flies, mosquitoes, and ticks, that feed on the blood of animals. Studies have shown that it can also spread through animal semen during artificial insemination. The disease causes fever, and nodules on the skin, and can cause death as is being witnessed in India right now.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.