The Federal Government plans to import 500,000 vaccines to combat the spread of Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) among cattle and buffaloes in the country, with Sindh emerging as the hardest-hit province, with 20,000 animals diagnosed with the disease.
According to an official source, the Federal Government has also offered the Sindh government one-time permission to import vaccines to combat Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD).
Syed Fakhar Imam, Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research, presided over a high-level meeting earlier today to combat the spread of Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) among cattle and buffaloes in Pakistan.
The Minister for Livestock Sindh, Abdul Bari, as well as the Secretaries of Livestock from Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan, as well as the animal husbandry commissioner, Muhammad Akram, were also present at the meeting.
According to the source, 20,000 cases of Lumpy Skin Disease (LSD) have been reported in the Sindh province so far.
The Federal Government has offered Sindh one-time import permission if it wants to import vaccines through the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), according to the source.
Fakhar Imam requested that DRAP allow the immediate import of vaccines to combat the spread of LSD.
Abdul Bari, Sindh’s Minister for Livestock, stated that the province had launched an awareness campaign to dispel myths about the LSD disease. He also stated that a task force has been formed to control the spread of the disease.
A representative from Punjab informed the minister that the province has approximately 250,000 goat pox vaccines that can be used in place of the LSD vaccine.
He stated that Punjab has increased its production of goat pox vaccine in order to meet the demand of Sindh and other provinces. Fakhar Imam has been informed that the hotspots of vaccine spread are being cordoned off in order to control the spread.
According to Fakhar, 7,500 people in Punjab have been trained to administer the vaccine to animals.
Dr. Muhammad Akram, the Animal Husbandry Commissioner, informed the meeting that 500,000 vaccines would be imported to combat the spread of LSD.
The minister was informed that this disease only affects cattle, buffaloes, and certain wild animals, and that it has been confirmed in Pakistan for the first time through clinical and laboratory diagnosis.
Vaccination, on the other hand, can successfully control the disease. It was also revealed that the sheep/goat pox vaccine, which is already on the market, is effective against the LSD virus. The government, on the other hand, is making urgent plans to import LSD vaccines.
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