More pigs died due to ASF

The number of pigs culled due to resurgence of African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak in Mizoram during this year crosses 20,000 mark (20,033) as of Sunday as 58 pigs were culled in Aizawl, Lunglei, Serchhip and Hnahthial districts on Sunday. State animal husbandry and veterinary department officials said that daily casualty of pigs on Sunday was 44 reported from Lunglei, Serchhip and Hnahthial which rises the total toll of pigs in the state since the resurgence of ASF outbreak this year on February 9 last to 11,493. At least 219 villages are declared as ASF infested by the veterinary department as of Sunday.

Meanwhile, a joint team of officials of veterinary department and forests department who went to a river near Bungtlang South in Mizoram-Myanmar-Bangladesh border Lawngtlai district in south Mizoram, where carcasses of 17 wild boars were discovered,  are yet to give reports to the state government.

Reports from Lunglei, however, said that the team could not take samples for testing whether the wild boars died due to ASF infections as only bones of the wild boars were found. It was suspected that a tiger or bear might have eaten the remnants of the carcasses as footprints of wild animal was discovered near the river. Veterinary department officials are yet to confirm the reports.