HUBLI: Reports of the outbreak of bird flu in Maharashtra has hit the poultry industry here badly with people avoiding the use chicken and eggs.

Most restaurants in the twin-cities and at the taluk centres have recorded a drastic fall in the demand for chicken dishes. "We used to purchase around 40 chickens a day. After the news about the bird flu spread, there has been a fall in the number of people who order chicken dishes. Hence, we have stopped buying chicken," Rashid of Olive Garden, a restaurant, said.

He noted that on the contrary, the demand for mutton and fish has almost doubled. "We have stocked enough fish to meet the growing demand," he said.

Teams

Meanwhile, the district administration has asked the officials concerned to set up teams to visit poultry farms to ensure that cleanliness is maintained there. The district health officials have clarified that there have been no case of bird flu in the district so far.

The district administration and the Hubli-Dharwad Municipal Corporation have appealed to people not to panic.

But there plea seems to have had little effect as most people are avoiding chicken on their dinner table.

With the demand for chicken declining, poultry owners have been hit badly. Maqbul, who owns a poultry farm in Hubli, told this Correspondent that the sale of chicken has come down by almost 80 per cent.

Even prices have gone down by almost 50 per cent. Broiler chicken, which used to be sold at Rs. 80 a kg, is finding no takers even at the price of Rs. 40 a kg.

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