African Swine Fever resurfaces in Dhakuakhana, 18 pigs culled

North Lakhimpur, Aug 23: Authorities in Dhakuakhana sub-division of Lakhimpur have stepped up containment measures after African Swine Fever (ASF) resurfaced in the region over the past two days.

Reports of fresh outbreaks from different parts of Dhakuakhana have prompted the veterinary department to initiate preventive steps to curb its spread.

To contain the outbreak, Dhakuakhana sub-divisional authorities imposed prohibitory orders banning the sale, consumption, and rearing of pigs within a 10-kilometre radius of the affected farm.

Officials from the veterinary department culled 18 pigs On August 21, at a RUWAN farm in Kherkati Gaon Panchayat, where ASF was confirmed.

Blood samples from a dead female pig, collected earlier on August 17, tested positive for the ASF virus at the North Eastern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (NERDDL), Khanapara.

Following the confirmation report, the department moved quickly to cull the remaining pigs at the farm.

The farm, established under the Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM)—a flagship programme of the Ministry of Rural Development to promote rural entrepreneurship—had been part of an initiative to support pig farming in the area.

This marks the return of ASF to Dhakuakhana after a gap of nearly one and a half years. The last outbreak was reported in December 2022, when piglets from farms under the same SPMRM scheme were culled.

At that time, 18 piglets infected with ASF were destroyed in Khaman-Lagachu, Ruptoli, and Bor Khamon villages of the sub-division.