Bandipur foresters on alert after outbreak of African Swine Flu

MYSURU: A month after five wild boars at the Bandipur Tiger Reserve succumbing to African Swine Flu, the foresters are on tenterhooks again following reports of the outbreak of the disease in neighbouring Mudumalai Tiger Reserve in Tamil Nadu. Officials in Bandipur said that they were leaving no stones unturned to check the disease from spreading in the forest. "We are being very vigilant, and ensuring that death of every single wild boar is registered, and the underlying cause ascertained," said an official, adding that Bandipur boasted a huge population of wild boars.
Foresters deployed on the ground in Bandipur had been directed to report each wild boar fatality to their seniors, confirmed a senior forest department official.
"But thus far, we have not recorded the death of any wild boar following the outbreak in Mudumalai," an official added.
Since animals move freely between Mudumalai and Bandipur forests, the officials are concerned about the possibility of the infectious disease spreading unchecked among the boars in the adjoining reserves.
Bandipur Tiger Reserve director P Ramesh Kumar said that results of the test performed on the five wild boars that died a month ago had confirmed that they had African Swine Flu.
"These fatalities were reported in Mangala, and surrounding villages of the reserve. We have since taken all necessary precautionary measures. There is no need to panic. This disease does not spread to other wild animals or to human beings," Kumar told STOI.