Lumpy skin disease: Satish Poonia says Rajasthan govt not paying attention to vaccination of cows

Jaipur: Rajasthan BJP president Satish Poonia on Wednesday hit out at the Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot-led government over its handling of lumpy skin disease and claimed more than 10 lakh cows have succumbed to the viral infection in the state. He said the disease is spreading rapidly across districts including Jodhpur, Barmer, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Jalore and Sirohi. Lumpy skin disease is caused by a virus of the capripox genus. It spreads rapidly among cows and buffaloes through flies, mosquitoes and ticks. It causes soft blister-like nodules all over the body, fever, runny nose, watery eyes, salivation, reduced milk yield and difficulty in eating. "There is neither proper treatment facility nor is the state government paying attention to the vaccination of cows. Lakhs of cows have died and their carcasses are being disposed of in the open. The Gehlot government is not able to provide land for disposal," Poonia said. According to an official report, 45,063 animals have died so far due to lumpy skin disease and 10,36,610 have been affected. To prevent infection, Poonia said, special teams should be formed in every district, pending recruitment processes in the Animal Husbandry Department should be completed, and there should be proper availability of medicines and vaccines for animals as well as timely treatment. The BJP leader also demanded that the state government provide financial support to cattle owners and farmers whose animals have died due to lumpy skin disease. Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.