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THE NATIONAL RINDERPEST ERADICATION PLAN [Vol. XXIV, Part I,
of freeze-drying which is of the order of about 90 per cent, the dry powder vaccine
would be very much more efficacious and at the same time more economical to use.
The freeze-drying equipment has already been installed at Izatnagar as well
as in a few other places and it will not be long before production of freeze-dried
virus vaccines becomes a reality in this country. Depending on the plan of work
decided upon production could also be made possible on regional basis, the centre
at Izatnagar taking care of supplies to the contiguous areas as well as to such States
as may not be in a position to undertake their own manufacture of freeze-dried
vaccines, and other stations looking after the areas falling in their own regions.
THE SHEEP AND GOAT PROBLEM
An important point worthy of consideration by the States themselves is whether,
in view of the gigantic nature of the campaign, involving production of vaccine for
as many as over 320 million animals of different species, their actual vaccination,
branding or tatooing for identification and maintaining all records thereof, all to
be accomplished in a relatively short period of 5-10 years, it would not be better
to leave sheep and goats out of the programme. It may be pointed out in this
connection that independent outbreaks of rinderpest of a severe nature
resulting in death of thousands of them have only recently been recorded among
sheep and goats in different parts of the country. Although in some of these out-
breaks, the disease was not noted to occur simultaneously in cattle and buffaloes
the fact remains that such outbreaks would remain serious sources of infection
to animals of other species and it may become absolutely impossible to achieve our
objective of eradication which the campaign aims at. It would thus appear that
any mass vaccination campaign aiming at eradication of the disease must be so
planned as to include all species of animals susceptible to the disease, so that at
least amongst the domesticated animal populations in the areas no animals may
be available that could get the infection and pass on to the progeny of the vaccinated
cattle and buffaloes as soon as such young stock come to existence.
It would thus appear that it would not be logical to leave out of the programme
sheep and goats of which the numbers in this country are quite considerable and
are likely to get even larger on account of great demand of meat and wool animals of
these species. But in the light of the gigantic nature of the campaign it would appear
quite logical to divide the campaign into two phases, the first phase during which
all larger animals, viz. cattle and buffaloes may be immunised and the second phase
in which all sheep and goats and other species as well as the progeny of cattle and
buffaloes, the number of which would have reached quite considerable figures by
the time an area is traversed a second time, could be tackled. However, it is for the
individual States to decide for themselves whether the phases could not be combined.
SUMMARY
From what has been stated above it naturally follows that:
(a) No single vaccine could be safe or economical to be used on the entire
animal population with the varying susceptibilities which it is
aimed to protect with a view to the eradication of the disease.