A vaccination camp for foot and mouth disease (FMD) for cattle will be held in all village panchayats in Villupuram district from July 1. The exercise will be held for 31 days.

Animal Husbandry department officials said necessary logistics were in place to ensure cent per cent coverage of the targeted cattle population of 4.48 lakh in the district. A total of 97 teams have been formed for the special camps to be held at the panchayats.

The vaccination drive will be held under the National Animal Disease Prevention Programme.

Each team, comprising a veterinary assistant surgeon, a livestock inspector, and an animal husbandry assistant will visit every village panchayat on a specific date and vaccinate the animals. The campaign to inoculate cattle against this viral infection is held once in six months.

Once affected by the disease, the cattle becomes unproductive and there is a drastic reduction in milk yield, affecting the livelihood of farmers, an official said, adding that the farmers should vaccinate their cattle without fail.

While advising farmers to get their cattle vaccinated without fail to protect them from the viral disease, the official said the cows and buffaloes aged above six months could be vaccinated during the drive. It was part of the ninth drive to protect the animals from the disease.

One more opportunity would be given to farmers, who fail to get their cattle vaccinated during the month-long drive in July, in the form of special camp to be held between August 1 and 8.