Assam: Western Lakhimpur becomes ASF hotspot; hundreds of pigs culled

North Lakhimpur: The western part of Lakhimpur district, sharing boundaries with Assam's Biswanath district and Arunachal Pradesh’s Papum Pare district, has become the new epicenter of African Swine Fever (ASF) in the past month, resulting in the culling of hundreds of infected animals and significant economic losses for livestock farm owners.

The areas of Dhalpur, Rangati, Simaluguri, and nearby regions have been declared a red zone by the district veterinary department following the outbreak of ASF about a month ago.

However, despite restrictions, cases of ASF have continued to be reported from various pig farms in the region, leading to mass culling by authorities.

Thirty pigs of different ages were culled by the district veterinary department at Dipen Gogoi's farm in Jamnagar, Rangati, Dhalpur, on November 9.

Earlier, on October 26, the Lakhimpur district veterinary department conducted culling operations at three pig farms in the Dhalpur, Rangati, and Simaluguri areas of western Lakhimpur. During that preventive operation, 150 ASF-positive pigs were culled.

Since the outbreak of the disease, local pig farm owners have been incurring substantial financial losses.

The SOP banning the sale and transportation of pigs in affected areas has left many farm owners out of business, despite their heavy investments in the sector.

The lack of compensation for the culled animals has also placed farm owners in dire straits.

According to the All Assam Pig Farmers Association (AAPFA), a demand was made for a 45-day suspension on the sale and transportation of pigs in Assam in light of the ASF outbreak.

However, a meeting between AAPFA and the North East Progressive Pig Farmers Association (NEPPFA) on October 15 did not reach a consensus on the suspension, contributing to the continued spread of the disease in the area.

Many pig farmers allege that the transportation of ASF-infected pigs from outside the state is responsible for the ongoing outbreak.

ASF-infected pigs from Lakhimpur are reportedly supplied to Arunachal Pradesh's Namsai via Sadia, and to Assam's Tinsukia district, causing similar problems for around 15,000 pig farmers in the state.

Farmers also cited a case of ASF-infected pigs transported from outside the state by a carrier (OD-02CA-8486) with sample numbers OD1 and OD2, air tag numbers 009 and 078, and NERDDL lab IDs 2280 and 2281.

Pig farmers are now demanding adequate compensation for the culled animals from the state authorities.