Wreaking havoc in at least ten out of the 11 districts of Mizoram, African swine fever (ASF) has affected the livestock sector severely by claiming the lives of 9,000 pigs in the last three months.
As per data published by Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science department, at least 152 villages across ten districts have faced losses worth Rs. 36.68 crores caused by the outbreak.
Moreover, the data mentioned that 699 pigs belonging to non-ASF-infected areas had unusual deaths, whereas, 1,078 pigs have been culled to prevent the further spread of the disease.
The capital city and district Aizawl has reported deaths of 3,454 pigs so far.
The first death of a pig was registered on March 21 at Lungsen village in Lunglei district that shares its borders with Bangladesh.
Notably, the only ASF-free district is Kolasib bordering Assam.
Experts have stated that ASF is not contagious to human health; however, there is no vaccine available for the virus to date.