PM to launch Rs 13,500cr livestock disease control scheme next week

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 11 will launch a Rs 13,500-crore central scheme to control livestock diseases, especially foot and mouth disease (FMD) and brucellosis, from Mathura district in Uttar Pradesh.

This was announced by Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying Giriraj Singh.

"Prime Minister will launch this programme on September 11 from Mathura," he told reporters here.

Singh exuded confidence that FMD and brucellosis diseases would be eradicated in the next five years with the help of this Rs 13,500 crore vaccination scheme.

The minister said these diseases need to be eradicated to boost exports.

The Union Cabinet in its first meeting of Modi 2.0 government in May had decided to bear the entire cost of Rs 13,343 crore under an existing scheme that seeks to control livestock diseases, especially FMD and brucellosis, in the next five years.

Earlier, the Centre and state governments used to contribute funds in the ratio of 60:40. The disease of FMD and brucellosis are common among the livestock -- cow, bulls, buffaloes, sheep, goats and pigs.

The scheme envisages vaccination coverage to 30 crore bovines (cows-bulls and buffaloes) and 20 crore sheep/goat and 10 million pigs.

The government had said if a cow or buffalo gets infected with FMD, the milk loss is up to 100 per cent which could last for four to six months.

In case of Brucellosis, the milk output reduces by 30 per cent during the entire life cycle of animal and also causes infertility among animals.

The infection of brucellosis can also be transmitted to the farm workers and livestock owners. Both the diseases have a direct negative impact on the trade of milk and other livestock products.