Assam: Veterinarians step up amid rural animal health crisis

Guwahati: In a state where livestock sustains millions of rural families, Assam’s animal healthcare system is silently struggling:understaffed, underfunded, and often invisible. 

From foot-and-mouth disease to swine fever, livestock epidemics continue to cripple the rural economy, exposing the fragile state of veterinary care in Assam.

“We talk a lot about farmer welfare, but without healthy animals, there are no healthy farms, no secure livelihoods, and no rural economy,” remarked a senior  officer at Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department (AH&VD). “Fixing animal health is not charity , it is an economic necessity.”She added.

Against this stark backdrop, a five-day hands-on training programme held from October 6–10 at Assam Agricultural University (AAU), Khanapara, has brought a rare ray of hope. For the first time in years, district-level veterinarians from 20 districts received practical, field-based training in modern diagnostic tools and disease management techniques, marking a crucial step toward strengthening grassroots veterinary services in the state.

The Lifeline for Assam’s Livelihoods

For rural Assam, livestock is more than just an economic activity,it is survival. According to a data available on internet, the state has over 18 million livestock and 4.6 million poultry, yet fewer than 1,200 active veterinarians serve the population one vet for every 15,000 animals, a ratio far below the national average.

In villages across Darrang, Morigaon, Barpeta, and Dhubri, cattle, pigs, and goats are the primary assets for small farmers. But poor disease diagnosis, lack of veterinary manpower, and absent laboratory infrastructure mean that even minor infections can turn fatal. Villagers often rely on unqualified local healers or untested home remedies sometimes with devastating consequences.

“When an animal falls sick in the village, there’s no one to call. By the time we find a doctor, it’s usually too late,” says Rupam Das, a farmer from Tinsukia district, who lost three cows last year to haemorrhagic septicaemia.

Training for the Future, Not the Past

Organised by the Directorate of Extension Education (Veterinary), AAU, in collaboration with the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department (AH&VD), the training programme was designed to equip district veterinary laboratories (DVLs) with the expertise and infrastructure needed to deliver rapid, local disease diagnosis.

“Our goal is to make every district veterinary lab self-reliant in disease detection,” said the authority .“When diagnosis happens locally, treatment begins faster and farmers don’t lose their only source of income.”

The programme’s 70% practical approach exposed veterinarians to advanced diagnostic tools, real-time sample collection, and biosafety protocols. Sessions were led by experts from AAU’s College of Veterinary Science, NERDDL Animal Health Centre, DBT-ADMaC, and private diagnostic companies, ensuring exposure to both academic and industrial techniques.

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“This was the first time we touched modern diagnostic kits ourselves, not just saw them in theory,” said a field vet from Nalbari. “Now, when we see an outbreak, we can confirm it scientifically instead of relying on guesswork.”

An Overlooked Crisis in the Heart of Assam

Experts agree that Assam’s animal health system has suffered from years of neglect. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report (2023) flagged multiple gaps in the state’s veterinary infrastructure, including non-functional sub-centres, vaccine shortages, and poor cold chain maintenance.

The Assam Livestock Census (2022) revealed that nearly 30% of animals remain unvaccinated or untreated for preventable diseases. In flood-prone areas, diseases often spread rapidly due to contaminated water and lack of biosecurity measures.

“Every year, thousands of livestock deaths go unrecorded. This is a silent rural disaster that policymakers often overlook,” said a senior veterinary scientist  requesting anonymity. “Animal health is rural wealth but it’s treated as an afterthought.”

“One Health” for All — A New Vision Emerges

During the training,  the ‘One Health’ concept was highlighted—recognizing that human, animal, and environmental health are interlinked. “Veterinary professionals are not just animal doctors; they are guardians of public health, preventing zoonotic diseases that can jump to humans,” he noted.

The training concluded with a valedictory session at AHC-NERDDL, where participants received certificates and a renewed sense of purpose. Several vets proposed that similar training programmes be institutionalized and held twice a year across regional centres to build continuous capacity.

A Way Forward: From Hope to Policy

Encouraged by the success of the initiative, the AH&VD Department has signalled plans to upgrade all district laboratories and digitize disease surveillance systems using mobile-based reporting. This could allow faster detection of outbreaks such as Foot-and-Mouth Disease or Swine Fever, which currently take weeks to confirm.

However, experts caution that training alone won’t fix systemic gaps. Without adequate funding, medicine supply, and infrastructure upgrades, rural animal healthcare will remain on life support.

“The state must invest in people and labs with the same urgency as it does in human healthcare. Livestock is not secondary,it’s survival for our farmers,” said an authority reiterating the department’s long-term vision.

Conclusion: Healing Begins in the Fields

For many of Assam’s field veterinarians, this training wasn’t just professional ,it was personal. They are the ones who wade through floodwaters, ride motorbikes across char areas, and often treat animals under a tree.

As one trainee summed up: “We’ve always worked with heart. Now, we finally have the science to back it.”

If sustained and scaled up, this small but significant initiative could mark the beginning of a long-overdue transformation one that gives voice to the veterinarians, hope to the farmers, and a future to Assam’s animals.