NEW DELHI, July 22 (Xinhua) -- African swine fever (ASF) cases have been reported from two farms in the southern Indian state of Kerala, officials said Friday.
The cases were detected at Mananthavady in Wayanad district, about 468 km north of Thiruvananthapuram, the capital city of Kerala.
"The disease was detected among pigs of two farms in the district and later confirmed after the samples were tested at the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases in Bhopal," an official at the district magistrate office in Wayanad said. "The samples were collected after pigs died last week."
According to officials, measures have been taken to prevent the spread of the disease, and an order to cull pigs has been issued.
"After confirming the infection orders have been issued to cull 300 pigs from all the nearby farms to contain the infection. As per the guidelines, all pigs within a one-kilometer radius of the epicenter of the disease are to be culled if there are reports of ASF," a local media report said.
ASF cases have been reported from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam last week.
Experts say ASF does not affect humans. However, they could be the carriers of the virus. ■
