Foot and Mouth Disease Decision Support System, Mukteswar, Nainital

An online FMD portal for disease monitoring and reporting in India has been developed and maintained by ICAR-Directorate of Foot and Mouth Disease (Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Ministry of Agriculture, India). FMD is endemic in India and three of the seven serotypes and many of their sub-types (lineages) are currently circulating in the country. FMD is a highly contagious disease and spreads rapidly in the un-protected animal population. With the ultimate aim of controlling and eradicating the disease from the country, All India Co-ordinated Research Project on FMD (AICRP on FMD) was launched in the year 1968 by ICAR, New Delhi. Currently, the AICRP on FMD consists of a network of 30 laboratories situated in various states of the country and one Central laboratory, situated at Mukteswar, Nainital Uttarakhand (LINK to AICRP MAP). The network of laboratories is engaged in active FMD disease monitoring, sero-monitoring and sero-surveillance in India. AICRP on FMD also supports the FMD Control Programme (run by Department of Animal Health, Fisheries DAHDF, Government of India) under which animals are biannually vaccinated.



The network of AICRP on FMD laboratories are responsible for collection of FMD epidemiological data, clinical materials and collection of serum for FMD monitoring in their respective states. In addition, preliminary screening of FMD suspected clinical materials are performed at the regionally located network laboratories, while re-confirmation of the results and further virological examination is performed at the Central Laboratory, Muketswar. To prevent the further spread of the virus (especially variant viruses) from the point of occurrence, a robust information management system was required. The fmd-dss was developed with multiple objectives. The system primarily links all these laboratories and helps in sharing of the FMD data in “near real-time” basis.