A new system is being worked out for linking block, district and state for animal diseases with a nodal central agency for better monitoring and control of trans-boundary diseases.

The National Animal Disease Reporting System (NADRS) will link each block, district and state headquarters through computer with a central disease reporting and monitoring centre in New Delhi.

This programme will enable veterinary authorities to closely monitor, control and eradicate animal diseases, particularly those of a trans-boundary nature.

NADRS is being implemented by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries (DADF) during 2010-11 through the National Informatics Centre (NIC).

Around 143 animal diseases scheduled in the Prevention and Control of Infectious and Contagious Diseases in Animals Act, 2009 are included in this reporting system.

"The project (NADRS) is expected to start in the next two months," National Informatics Centre (NIC) Deputy Director General M Moni told PTI.

The project is being funded by the Union government with a grant of Rs 104.05 crore.

"Under this project we are networking 6,350 blocks, 615-620 districts, all state and union territories and research institutions, a total of 7032 centres will be connected," NADRS Project Director Naveen Kumar said.

The most revolutionary aspect of NADRS is that there will be options of reporting about a disease through mobile SMS, which will be transported to a central portal in a very short time and flashed according to the importance, he added.

India is presently loosing around Rs 20 crore annually due lack of effective monitoring of the foot and mouth disease at grassroot level, Kumar said, adding that implementation of such a project will drastically reduce the loss.

BSNL is providing the internet connectivity for the project and broadband connectivity has been installed at 2,600 centres. Also computer equipment has been provided at around 95 per cent of the total 7,032 centres, he said.

The project work is going on successfully in Rajasthan, Delhi, Gujarat, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.