Lumpy skin disease spreads in India's Uttarakhand; 38 bovine death cases reported so far

The Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) in the bovine population has claimed the lives of 38 bovines since 5 May while six deaths have been reported on Wednesday, said the animal husbandry department officials in Uttarakhand.

According to the animal health bulletin released by the animal husbandry department, six animals died due to the disease while 383 animals were affected.

The number of recovered animals was 159 while 383 were treated with around 3,792 animals getting their vaccination on Wednesday.

LSD is an infectious disease in cattle caused by a virus of the family Poxviridae, also known as Neethling virus. The disease is characterised by fever, enlarged superficial lymph nodes and multiple nodules on the skin and mucous membranes.

Saurabh Bahuguna, animal husbandry department minister said, "Over 3,514 cases have been detected 38 deaths in past ten days while the total number of active cases till Wednesday evening was at 1,648 and 1,828 animals showed recovery as the vaccination drive was conducted on 7,46,530 animals till Wednesday with case fatality rate (CFR) being at 1.08% while recovery rate stood at 52.02 %."

"We have issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) to control the spread of disease and have banned inter-district and state transportation of animals while all the leaves of the department officials and employees have been cancelled for one month," said Bahuguna.

PS Bhandari, chief veterinary officer Champawat said, "We have deployed teams for each village who are conducting check-ups to detect the cases and the cattle that have not been infected so far are being vaccinated since the disease surfaced in the hilly district."

The frequent spell of rain and cooler climate have been the main reason for the virus thriving in the hills during this season, said Bhandari.