With the Japanese Encephalitis Virus (JEV) having claimed over 55 children’s lives in Malkangiri, pig farming has taken a deadly blow.
As the district of Malkangiri is placed second among other districts in pig farming in the State, pig farmers are now a worried lot.
According to official data, the State has around 3 lakh pigs, including 41,010 in Malkangiri, where over 4,000 families depend upon pig farming for their livelihood. Many of them have taken loan for pig farming and the Government has provided them subsidy for it.
Following the outbreak of Japanese Encephalitis in Malkangiri, pigs are being kept away from human habitats in enclosures to check the spread of the JE virus from them to people, especially infants. Nearly 10,000 pigs have so far been taken away from the villages and kept in 140 enclosures.
As the pigs are in enclosures, it is difficult for the owners to identify their pigs.
Meanwhile, culling of pigs has begun. The vector-borne Japanese Encephalitis is spread through the Culex mosquito bites from the domestic pigs and wild birds (especially herons).
Pig farmers’ body, Ghusuri Chasi Suraksha Samiti, has sought adequate compensation for culling of animals. It has also demanded protection for continuing their hereditary profession.
Samiti secretary Abinash Guru said a separate community called ‘Ghusuria,’ who belongs to Scheduled Caste, depend upon ‘pig farming’ for a livelihood.
There are around 70,000 Ghusuria families living in the districts of Baleswar, Bhadrak, Keunjhar, Jajpur, Kendrapada, Jagastinghpur, Cuttack, Khordha, Dhenkanal, Puri, Ganjam, Nayagarh, he said.
During the outbreak of swine flu disease in 2007 and 2008, more than 5,000 pigs were culled to prevent the disease. However, no compensation has yet been provided to the affected pig farmers by the Government, Guru alleged.
He alleged that around 4,000 pigs have already been killed in Malkangiri and termed the decision as unfortunate.