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India’s first vaccine for blue tongue disease that is increasingly afflicting sheep and goat across the country was launched by veterinary biological company Indian Immunologicals Ltd here today.
Blue tongue is a viral disease, which has about 24 viral strains prevalent across the world. However, in India, only five strains are mostly prevalent, but its incidence in the cattle population is increasing.
“The incidence rate (of this disease) is estimated at 50 per cent of the sheep and goat population in India, with the mortality rate touching almost 30 per cent. India has about 200 million sheep and goat population,” said K V Balasubramaniam, managing director of IIL, an arm of the National Dairy Development Board.
The incidence of this disease is much higher compared to other susceptible species, including camels, with several outbreaks reported from the sheep belt in southern and western states. There is no preventive mechanism till date and routine drugs are used for treatment. The symptoms include fever and blue tongue.
IIL developed this vaccine in collaboration with Indian Council of Agriculture Research and Tamil Nadu University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences. “We took about three years to develop this vaccine. Although we are the first to come out with this vaccine, we still have kept the price at an affordable Rs 5 per dose,” he told media persons here.
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