Swine flu under control, no cause for panic, says Meghalaya government

Shillong: The Meghalaya government on Thursday said that the African Swine Fever (ASF) in the State was under control and that there was no reason to panic as the flu did not affect human beings.
“As of now, the disease is under control, and people should not panic. In case of any incident of sudden death of pigs, farmers are to contact respective District Animal Husbandry & Veterinary (A.H& V) Officer or any nearby A.H & V Officer,” Assistant Director (Disease Investigation), Dr. S. Tham said.
Tham said the total number of the reported death of pigs in Meghalaya is 1,016 in six districts including 38 villages from July 25, 2020 to July 15, 2021, which includes both laboratory-confirmed ASF cases and those pending confirmation.
Noting that ASF disease has no public health implications, the veterinarian said, “it is safe to consume pork after cooking properly at 70°C for 30 minutes. There is neither treatment nor vaccine available for ASF and requires strict hygiene and bio-security measures.”
He said the Department of A.H & Veterinary, Meghalaya from the first reported incident of ASF in the State in the month of July 2020 at Lamin village in West Jaintia Hills district had immediately taken prompt action in sending the team to the affected village.
“Around 139 Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) were set up spreading across the state to conduct active and passive surveillance,” Tham said.
“Towards later part of November 2020, this disease started subsiding but in the month of April 2021 it started re-appearing in certain villages of Ri-Bhoi district,” the veterinarian said.