African swine fever has been confirmed in Meenachil panchayat, Kottayam. Based on this, the District Collector, Dr. P.K. Jayashree, who is also the Chairperson of the District Disaster Management Authority, said that precautionary measures have been taken in the district. An area of one kilometer around the confirmed pig farms has been declared as an infected area.
Apart from this, an area of ten kilometer radius has also been declared as a disease surveillance zone. It has been ordered to stop the distribution of pork and the operation of the shops that supply it. A Rapid Action Task Force has also been constituted to assess the activities.
This comes after bird flu was confirmed in Alappuzha. Around 20,471 poultry birds will be culled in Alappuzha following a report that the recent death of ducks at Haripad here was on account of avian influenza.