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Anthrax vaccines sent to Bandarban to check 'disease'

OUR CORRESPONDENT, Bandarban
The Department of Livestock, Bandarban yesterday sent anthrax virus protection vaccines to Lama upazila after the deadly germ was found in the carcass of an elephant at Yangchha in the upazila.
In a bid to check possible spread of the disease among local cattle, the department sent 700 vaccines to the affected area, forest official Tapan Kanti Dey told The Daily Star yesterday. The virus found in Yangchha is a soil-transmitted bacterium and it could have been found anywhere, he added. He, however, brushed aside a possible outbreak of the disease in the area.
Tapan said he met Dhaka Central Zoo authorities and necessary steps will be taken to check further spreading of Anthrax, also known as wool sorter's disease.
M Hafizur Rahman, deputy commissioner, Bandarban, said the area, where the elephant was buried, has been made off-limits to public. They also poured 60kg lime and other chemicals around the burial ground to keep the area clean.
Local administration is keeping in touch with officials concerned and continuously monitoring the situation, he added.
A team of veterinary doctors led by Dr Abdul Malek has been sent in the area with adequate vaccines to limit further expansion of the virus,
sources said.
Abdul Mannan, deputy director of Bandarban livestock department, said forest officials delayed to inform them of the elephant's death.
Official sources said Salah Uddin Mahmud, director general of the Department of Livestock, will visit the area soon.
Bandarban District Parishad yesterday formed a two-member committee with civil surgeon and a district livestock official to look into the side-effects of the virus in the area, sources said.
The committee will also oversee measures taken by various government agencies and submit its report today (Sunday), they added.
Mohammad Ullah and Jasim Uddin, arrested on June 11 with elephant tusks, were sent to Bandarban jail, sources said.
Both will be tested to determine whether they are affected with the disease, sources said.
Anthrax is an acute infectious disease, often fatal, associated with animal contact caused by the spore-forming bacterium Bacillus anthracis. The disease most commonly affects hoofed mammals and can also infect humans.