Kathmandu: Minister for Agriculture and Livestock, Dr. Beduram Bhusal, announced during a press conference held at his ministry that efforts to combat lumpy skin disease in livestock have been successful, and the situation is now under control.

Lumpy skin disease had previously taken a toll on livestock in the country. The government took significant measures to prevent and treat the disease, including importing vaccines from countries such as Jordan, Tanzania, and Turkey.

Dr. Bhusal stated that over 1.3 million doses of vaccines were imported and administered to nearly one million cattle. As a result, the number of cattle recovering from the disease is steadily increasing. Out of the over 1.5 million livestock affected in the country, approximately 1.4 million have now recovered.

Currently, there are 73,636 cases of livestock still affected by the disease, with a total of 52,548 recorded fatalities.

The Minister also informed the media that the government is considering measures to provide relief to farmers who have lost cattle due to the disease. A relief distribution standard has been sent to the Finance Ministry and Home Ministry for approval.

Dr. Bhusal emphasized the government's focus on increasing agricultural production by improving irrigation facilities on cultivable land. He acknowledged the challenges faced by farmers in accessing chemical fertilizers. With rice constituting 67 percent of total food consumption in Nepal, the government plans to launch a campaign to increase the cultivation of early rice (Chaite dhan) to address the growing demand, which currently stands at 1.2 million tons. -RSS