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58
Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949.—Rats and mice are
notorious not only for the wholesale destruction and fouling of foodstuffs
and for the structural damage they cause to buildings, but also
for their part in the spread of disease. Leptospirosis (Weil's disease)
is primarily a disease of rats and is one which can be fatal to man.
The disease is transmitted by means of food, dust, mud, slime and
water which has been contaminated by urine or faeces from infected
rats. Efficient rodent control is the first and most important
defence against this type of disease.
The Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949, has placed the
onus for the destruction of these pests on Local Authorities and
makes obligatory the notification to these authorities by occupiers
of any rodent infestation.
The following report was submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture,
Fisheries and Food, for the 12 months ended 31st March,
1958