The Hindu : National : Million birds to be culled in 4 States

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Million birds to be culled in 4 States

Gargi Parsai

For an “immunity belt” between bird flu-hit West Bengal and adjoining States

— Photo: PTI

Out of business: A chicken vendor reads a newspaper as bird flu has affected business at the New Market in Kolkata on Friday.

NEW DELHI: The Centre has ordered the culling of poultry birds within a radius of five kilometres in four States adjoining the bird flu-hit districts of West Bengal.

These include Bihar, Jharkhand, Orissa and Assam. This step is being taken to create an “immunity belt” between the bird flu-hit districts and the States that share their borders. A notification to this effect was issued late on Friday night.

In the four States, un-infected poultry birds will be culled to prevent the spread of the pathogenic H5N1. The culling operations will be undertaken in seven districts in Jharkhand, five in Bihar, and two each in Orissa.

It is estimated that the total number of poultry — mostly backyard — in Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam and Orissa is 14.5 million. The States have been asked to furnish an estimate of the number of poultry that would be culled in the selected districts but initial estimates put the figure at a minimum of one million. The farmers will be paid compensation. They will also be given relief under a comprehensive package being prepared by the Centre.

The decision is based on the recommendation of a technical committee of experts from the Department of Animal Husbandry, Health and the Indian Council of Agriculture. The committee also considered the option of “ring vaccination” to healthy poultry birds in the four States but it was dropped as it was not considered feasible to cover each and every bird with the two shots of vaccination. “With low temperatures that are conducive for the spread of the disease, time is of the essence. Therefore, the decision to cull the birds was taken,” said a highly placed source.

He said the Centre and the States have a difficult task ahead. “Creating awareness is crucial.”

Animal Husbandry Commissioner S.K. Bandopadhyaya, who is on the expert committee, said culling was nearing completion in West Bengal — 27.6-lakh had been culled so far of a target of 27.79-lakh birds.

He said blood samples of two bar-headed geese found dead in Jammu had been sent to the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal for testing.

He said migratory geese came into the avian influenza radar about three years ago when they tested positive in China. “This is the largest flier migratory bird and one that can withstand the cold of Mount Everest. It flies at an altitude of 30,000 ft. About 10,000 migratory birds come to Jammu and Kashmir and the death of two out of these could be chance. There could be any reason and we have sent the samples to the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory in Bhopal.”

He said some birds died in Bhiwani, Haryana, of a chronic respiratory disorder syndrome, not from avian influenza. There were no reports of unusual mortality in poultry from any other part of the country, including Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, he asserted.

It was too early to say if the situation had been contained in West Bengal even though the number of incidents and mortality was coming down. “Mopping operations are difficult and about 10 per cent birds are discovered during mopping especially in populated backyard poultry.”

Shashi Khare of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases said there were no human infection cases so far. “Only one veterinary doctor had some respiratory symptoms in 24 South Parganas, but his blood sample tested negative. There are no patients in the isolation ward.”

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