Vet helpline launched

The Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services has launched a veterinary helpline on a pilot basis in Bangalore Rural, Mysore, Belgaum and Gulbarga districts on Tuesday.

Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs T B Jayachandra launched the helpline— 080-23417100 under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana at Karnataka Veterinary Council in Hebbal. Initially, the helpline will give information on livestock rearing, details on services provided by the Animal Husbandry department, location of nearest veterinary centres and doctors available there.

The helpline will function from a call centre set up at the Council. The veterinary experts at the centre will disseminate crucial information related to animal husbandry and would transfer calls to the veterinary experts in the four districts. The call centre can receive up to 30 calls at a time. Farmers can call the helpline between 7 am and 9 pm. “The helpline will be implemented across the State in the next three months based on the response from livestock owners,” Jayachandra said.

From February 15, a month-long state-wide vaccination drive against foot-and-mouth disease will be launched, he added. Karnataka Veterinary Medical Council Registrar K V Kulkarni said: “Calls to the helpline were currently chargeable but discussions were being held to make it toll free.”