Punjab Launches Mobile Veterinary Fleet

Punjab has introduced a fleet of mobile veterinary units to deliver livestock treatment and diagnostic services to farmers throughout the province. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif unveiled the mobile veterinary units and emphasized how this development enhances veterinary care accessibility for livestock farmers. During the inauguration, she examined a mobile veterinary dispensary, laboratory, and X-ray unit, directing officials to organize a livestock conference and approving the design for a model veterinary hospital.

According to officials, Punjab now boasts 2,206 operational mobile veterinary hospitals. These units will be equipped with ultrasound and X-ray facilities, with laboratories capable of conducting up to 40 tests onsite. Additionally, the units will aid in screening and monitoring livestock diseases. The provincial livestock department stated that X-ray facilities will be available at 10 divisional hospitals, while operation theatres and laboratories will be established across all 36 districts. They also plan to provide 138 ultrasound machines in the province's tehsils.

Veterinary assistants will utilize 6,964 motorcycles to reach farmers' camps and provide treatment to livestock. The government mentioned that over 1,000 interns partaking in the chief minister's internship program have already treated approximately 3.4 million animals. Furthermore, Punjab aims to establish a model veterinary hospital in each tehsil, and construct or renovate 230 existing veterinary hospitals.

These model hospitals will encompass cattle, mechanical, and horse crush facilities, along with hydraulic operating tables and modern lighting in operating theatres.

The government also announced plans for the artificial culling of 800,000 animals, with the intention of boosting milk and meat production. Punjab has been declared free of lumpy skin disease following a vaccination campaign, announced officials. Maryam Nawaz expressed that Punjab's livestock farmers will now receive treatment facilities at their doorstep. The launch of the mobile veterinary fleet appears in ProPakistani.