Aizawl: Five people were arrested in Mizoram’s Mamit district after they were allegedly caught transporting 45 pigs infected with African Swine Fever (ASF) from Assam in violation of restrictions, an official of the State Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department said on Thursday.
The pigs were being transported in five vehicles for slaughter and sale in Aizawl, the official said.
The transporters allegedly bypassed a veterinary checkpost at Zawlnuam on the Mizoram-Assam border but were intercepted at nearby Zamuang village. They were subsequently taken to Mamit, she said.
Authorities seized the pigs and the vehicles used to transport them, following which the District Magistrate filed a criminal complaint.
Veterinary doctors later conducted random tests and confirmed that the pigs were infected with ASF.
The pigs were subsequently culled in accordance with a court order and buried at Mualpui on the outskirts of Mamit town on Wednesday night under the supervision of Mamit District Veterinary Officer Saipari Sailo, the official said.
A case has been registered against the five accused, who have been directed to appear before the District Court on September 8, she said.