Discuss the significance of compartmentalization and zoning approaches in disease control programmes for livestock, with reference to India's FMD control strategy.

Zoning defines a disease-free animal subpopulation on a geographical basis, while compartmentalization defines it by biosecurity and management practices across locations [3]. With livestock contributing 31% of agricultural GVA and 5.5% of national GVA, India's shift towards these WOAH-aligned tools is central to its goal of FMD-free status by 2030 [1].

Why these approaches matter for disease control

• Containment without nationwide lockdown: zoning limits an outbreak to a restricted area while preserving the health status of the rest of the territory [3].
• Progressive, resource-efficient control: allows scarce vaccine, surveillance and diagnostic capacity to be concentrated where risk is highest — reflected in India's identification of nine priority States for FMD [1].
• Enterprise-level flexibility: compartmentalization lets biosecure dairy or piggery units earn free status even in an infected zone [3].

Significance for India's FMD strategy

• Trade competitiveness: internationally recognised free zones are the gateway to livestock and livestock-product export markets, which blanket-infected status closes off [1][3].
• Building on vaccination gains: sustained mass vaccination under the National Animal Disease Control Programme [2] has delivered 1.4 billion doses, capacity of 116 crore doses annually, a fall in NSP seroprevalence from 16.6% (2022) to 7.8% and no Asia-1 serotype cases in three years — the epidemiological base zoning now needs [1].
• Livelihood security: over 8 crore rural families depend on livestock; disease-free zones stabilise their incomes [1].
• Institutional deepening: the Bhubaneswar national workshop (July 2026) paired zoning with diagnostic-quality tools like the Rate My Laboratory App under the Pandemic Fund [1].

Compartmentalization and zoning thus convert vaccination-led disease suppression into internationally certifiable freedom, marrying animal health with trade policy. Their success will hinge on Centre–State coordination, credible surveillance and traceability, and sustained cold-chain and veterinary staffing in priority States. Realising the 2030 FMD-free target would advance both rural livelihood security and India's One Health commitments under SDG-2 and SDG-3.