An official from the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Department stated that Mizoram lost ₹114.64 crore in 2025 as a result of the African Swine Fever (ASF) epidemic that killed over 9,700 pigs throughout the state.Esther Lalzoliani Ralte, Deputy Director (Disease Investigation and Epidemiology), told PTI that between March and December of last year, 3,620 pigs were put to death as a preventative measure, while 9,711 pigs perished from ASF. 3,867 households were impacted by the pandemic during this time.
On March 21, 2021, ASF was discovered in Mizoram at Lungsen village in the Lunglei district, which is close to the border with Bangladesh. The illness has since had a serious negative effect on the state’s pig population. Since 2021, 72,012 pigs have either died or been put down, impacting more than 12,500 households and resulting in a total of ₹1,011.27 crore in financial damages.According to Ralte, 52,979 of these pigs were killed in order to stop the illness from spreading. The state’s most recent ASF-related swine fatalities were recorded on December 8 of last year.
She said that pig farmers had received more than ₹14.51 crore in compensation for pigs killed up till 2023, which was paid jointly by the state and federal governments. The Center has received a proposal requesting ₹24.94 crore in compensation for pigs killed in 2024; the state and the Center would split the sum evenly. Pigs that pass away as a result of ASF, however, receive no payment. Official statistics show that Mizoram had the greatest number of pig deaths in 2021 (33,417), followed by 14,950 in 2024 and 12,795 in 2022. Additionally, the state lost the most money in 2024 (₹336.4 crore), followed by 2021 (₹334.14 crore) and 2022 (₹210.32 crore).
Ralte pointed out that while ASF outbreaks often decrease in the winter, they frequently reappear in the summer. Additionally, she noted that outbreaks of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) had previously occurred in Mizoram in 2013, 2016, 2018, and 2020, killing thousands of pigs and piglets and causing losses estimated at ₹10.62 crore.
