African Swine Fever continues to wreak havoc in Mizoram, 19 villages affected

Mizoram has been plagued by the contagious African Swine Fever (ASF) since the first outbreak was recorded on March 21 in Mizoram's Lunglei district, which borders Bangladesh. The outbreak has currently affected 119 villages and localities in 10 out of 11 districts.

Animal Husbandry, Veterinary Department, and Forest Department authorities rushed to the spot after three dead wild boars were found in Ramlaiphul forest near the Myanmar border in Leisenzo Village, Champhai District on Thursday.

Dr. Rinhlui, a veterinary official who investigated the dead animals, told IndiatodayNe that the carcasses of two female wild pigs and a wild piglet were found by locals in a forest about 6 kilometres from the village on Tuesday.

To identify the cause of their deaths, samples were transported to Bhopal.

Earlier one wild boar was found dead under mysterious conditions in a forest in the Samthanga area in the same Champhai district she also mentioned. 

As per the data released by the animal husbandry and veterinary department, 33417 have died in the first outbreak with a loss estimate of more than 60 crore rupees. And another 8539 have also died in the 2nd outbreak till yesterday. 

A total of 41,956 pigs have died due to ASF from March last year till yesterday, causing huge monetary losses.