INDIA CONFIRMS BIRD FLU IN 6 STATES

Sat 09 January 2021:

With the outbreak of avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, in several parts of India, the country’s poultry industry is in for a bumpy ride.

The South Asian country has started culling thousands of birds after reports that the disease has been detected in ducks, crows and wild geese in several parts of the country.

The Indian Government on Friday said bird flu has been confirmed so far in Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Gujarat, and asked these six states to contain the disease as per the action plan.

Unusual mortality of 16 birds has also been reported at DDA park Hastsal Village in the national capital, and samples have been sent to a testing lab.

“So far, the disease has been confirmed from six states (Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Gujarat).

“It is learnt that culling operations have been completed in both the affected districts of Kerala. The disinfection process is underway,” according to an official statement.

States that are still unaffected by Avian Influenza (AI) have been requested to keep a vigil on any unusual mortality among birds and to report immediately so that necessary measures are taken in the fastest possible time, it added.

Central teams have been deployed to visit the affected states of Kerala, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh for monitoring and for epidemiological investigation.

The government said that in Haryana, there has been confirmation of Avian Influenza positive samples from ICAR-NIHSAD in poultry (two poultry farms) of the Panchkula district. Positive samples have also been reported in migratory birds in the Junagadh district, Gujarat, and in crows in Sawai Madhopur, Pali, Jaisalmer and Mohar districts of Rajasthan.

According to experts in India, migratory birds could be the possible cause of the avian flu, an illness that usually affects only birds.

“The migratory birds which come to our country may be the carriers of the disease. Right now, we are seeing precautionary measures by the government but the disease has started affecting the poultry industry,” wildlife biologist Sumit Dookia told Anadolu Agency.

K.S. Gopi Sundar, a scientist at the Nature Conservation Foundation, said while the situation seems to be under control at the moment, the bad sign is that the bird deaths are being reported from multiple parts of the country.

“Right now, it seems to be under control in a sense that the disease is getting reported and the government is taking action,” he said.

Sundar believed the source is unlikely the migratory birds. “We are seeing that the migratory birds are dying in December and January. These are the months when they are in the country. It also suggests that the source is local,” he said.

On Thursday, Jammu and Kashmir announced a ban on the import of poultry until Jan. 14. The Madhya Pradesh government permitted officers concerned to impose a temporary ban on trading with poultry companies based in South Indian states, in case the need arises.

Praveen Garg, a senior functionary of the Punjab Poultry Association, said: “The industry suffered heavily during the COVID-19 [pandemic] because of false rumors. Now if it [the pandemic] continues for a long time, it will bring more problems for the sector because people link it with eggs and chickens. It happens every time.”

Garg said the industry lost millions of rupees last year after people started linking chicken meat and eggs with the transmission of COVID-19 among humans.

India is one of the world’s largest producers of eggs and chicken meat.

Precautions advised

Health experts said those involved in the poultry industry need to be careful.

“People handling or culling the birds should be extra careful and take precautions by using PPE [personal protective equipment],” Shobha Broor, former head of the department of microbiology at Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences, told Anadolu Agency.

She said though humans catching the bird flu is rare, those coming in contact with infected live or dead birds could contract it.

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