143
Occasionally "Tara Mira" oil is given internally which is said to act on the
tumours, making them soft, and therefore the contents are easily squeezed out.
The cattle owners are quite ignorant of the Gad fly which lays the eggs, and
were quite surprised when the life history of this pest was explained to them.
642. The following information was received from the Director of Land
Records and Agriculture, Assam:—
"The warble-fly is well-known in this province where it is called bhan bhania makhi or bar makhi, the
first being derived from the humming noise the fly makes while hovering over an animal or over any putrid
matter such as dung in which it seeks to lay its eggs, and the second name denoting its large size as compared
with that of the common house-fly. The warble-fly infests cattle, buffaloes, deer and sheep, but goats are said
to be free from its attacks. It appears mostly in the dry hot months of May and June, though it occurs more
or less all through the year.
"The people of this province do not appear to know of any remedy for preventing the attacks of the
warble-fly. Curative treatment is not, however, unknown, though seldom practised. To kill the maggots, the
wound is dressed with a mixture of tobacco powder and lime, or simply with quick lime, or with a mixture of
soot and plantain ashes. Powdered leaves of the peach tree are also said to be efficacious. After the maggots
have been killed, the wound is fumigated with the leaves of a shrub called mahudi or kukuki (literally magic
tree), the smoke being blown into the wound through a bamboo tube,
"There can be no doubt that the warble-fly causes considerable injury among cattle in Assam. The chief
injury consists in the loss of condition of the cattle in fested with its maggots. The hides of course lose in
value, but as far as the Assam valley is concerned, this loss is considerable in view of the small quantity* of
hides exported from the valley. "
643. It will therefore be seen that Warbles among cattle and goats are
very widely distributed practically throughout India, and there can be little
doubt that a very severe loss is sustained by India through this pest. It is,
however, difficult to see how this can be remedied except by the distribution
of advice. A leaflet might be issued to all Tehsils for free distribution to
villages, explaining the nature of the disease, its cause and its prevention. If
during August and September, the backs of cattle were smeared with oil and
mud, or mud and cow dung, to which a decoction of "Bhekkar " (Adhatoda
Vasica) was added, it is confidently anticipated that the Gad fly would not
attack. As, however, the cultivator is a very conservative person, and the loss
entailed by the attacks from this fly does not affect him in any way, because
the skin belongs by custom to the Chamars, he will probably, irrespective of
all advice, continue in the footsteps of his forefathers and do nothing to ward
off the evil.
Tuberculosis.
644. The manufacture of Tuberculin at the Laboratory should have a
distinct bearing on the various Government Dairies in this country. It will
be of great interest to ascertain whether Tuberculosis amongst cattle exists or
not in this country; as far as I am aware, Tuberculin has only been used in
Bengal for its detection, but it has only been tried on such a small scale as to
render this Department unable to speak with any certainty of its existence.
When the Imperial Bacteriologist is prepared to supply Tuberculin in any
quantity and after it has been properly tested, I shall propose for the consider-
ation of the Government of India, that it should be extensively used on the
cattle at Hissar. We have this advantage at the Cattle Farm that it will be
tried there under careful professional supervision, and being perfectly innocuous
to cattle, except to cows in calf, in which animals it at times produces abortion,
there should be no objection to giving it an extensive trial; this would estab-
lish the fact whether the disease, which is one and the same as is met with in
man, exists amongst the cattle of India.
645. Should it be ascertained that it does exist, I would then recommend
that the test be applied to all Government Dairies. It is of the greatest import-
ance to free these of all tuberculous cattle, for by the eradication of bovine
tuberculosis, disease, especially amongst children, will be greatly diminished.
These tests would, however, have to be applied by a Veterinary Officer well
versed in the diseases of cattle, for although Tuberculin may be said to be practi-
cally an infallible test still there are many points to be guarded against; especi-
ally is this the case in accidental rises of temperature in animals whilst being
tested; this would lead to their being classed as tuberculous whilst they are not
so. Again, animals that are tuberculous may be classed as healthy unless the
operation is performed with care, and this necessitates its being performed by
persons accustomed to handle animals.
646. That we may have Tuberculosis in our midst may well be the case;
for years no doubt this disease has existed to a large extent in England, and
* The fly above referred to is the "blue bottle" which deposits its eggs in dung or in wounds. These are not the habits of the Gad