The Hanoi municipal People's Committee had asked leaders of districts and towns to promptly establish steering boards for epidemic prevention and control and introduce effective measures against blue-ear disease in pigs.

The committee urged localities to strictly implement preventive measures following the regulations of the Veterinary Ordinance and instructions of functional agencies to detect new outbreaks of the disease as soon as possible and prevent further contagion.

According to the Hanoi Department of Animal Health, blue-ear disease has spread to two more districts, Thuong Tin and Thanh Oai. Earlier, three districts - Gia Lam, Me Linh and Phu Xuyen - had been found to be hit by the epidemic.

As many as 418 pig breeding farms in 56 hamlets in 17 communes of the above five districts were reported to be infected by blue-ear disease, resulting in more than 3,770 sick pigs, including more than 2,100 deaths.