Lumpi-ProVac is used to immunise animals against lumpy skin disease and provides protection for roughly a year. The vaccine must be sent on ice and used within a few hours of reconstitution if stored at 4 degrees Celsius.
New Delhi, India – On Saturday, the government announced the signing of an agreement with the Pune-based Institute of Veterinary Biological Products (IVBP) for the commercial manufacturing of an indigenously created vaccine called ‘Lumpi-ProVac’ for the management of lumpy skin disease in cattle.
The vaccine was produced by the National Centre for Veterinary Type Culture in Haryana and the ICAR-National Research Centre for Equines in conjunction with the ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute in Uttar Pradesh.
According to an official release, Agrinnovate India Ltd, the commercial arm of the Department of Agriculture Research and Education under the auspices of the Union Agriculture Ministry, has awarded IVPB ‘non-exclusive rights’ for commercial manufacturing of ‘Lumpi-ProVac’ for ten years.
Following the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU), Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying Parshottam Rupala directed IVBP to “start producing the vaccine on a big scale as soon as possible.”
The Goat Pox vaccine is being used to combat Lumpy Skin Disease in cattle. According to him, this MoU would also secure large-scale manufacturing of Goat Pox vaccine for future demands of India’s livestock industry.
The occasion was attended by Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and state Animal Husbandry Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil.
“It is expected that the vaccine technique would surely meet market criteria and significantly provide a defence mechanism to handle the horrible lumpy skin disease,” the announcement states.
Lumpi-ProVac is used to immunise animals against lumpy skin disease and provides protection for roughly a year. The vaccine must be sent on ice and used within a few hours of reconstitution if stored at 4 degrees Celsius. The ICAR has submitted a patent for the invention, according to the announcement.
The Lumpy Skin Disease was first reported in India in 2019, with Odisha reporting the first case. It then spread to many states throughout the country. In 2019, a huge number of cattle died in several states due to increased morbidity, particularly in the country’s northwestern area.
The illness has been managed and confined using the country’s available Goat Pox vaccination. Given the significant output losses and cattle mortality, ICAR launched research on the development of an indigenous homologous vaccine against Lumpy Skin Disease.
B N Tripathi, Deputy Director General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, and other top officials from IVRI, NRCE, and AgIn were also in attendance.
The Centre has signed an agreement with the Pune-based IVBP to commercialise the ‘Lumpi-ProVac.’
