With Kerala on high alert since Monday after an outbreak of bird flu was confirmed in two of its districts, vehicles carrying poultry from Kerala were not allowed inside Tamil Nadu at the border check-posts, from Tuesday.
An official with the Department of Animal Husbandry, Tamil Nadu, told The Hindu that the department started checking vehicles from Kerala entering Coimbatore district at 12 places from Tuesday morning. “Vehicles carrying poultry and related items will not be allowed to enter Tamil Nadu. Other commercial vehicles will be sanitised before allowing to enter the State,” said the official.
In Tiruppur district, the Department of Animal Husbandry began checking of the vehicles entering through the check-post at Chinnar near Udumalpet on Tuesday. A senior official said that four staff members from the Department will be involved for each shift during the round-the-clock checking. There have been no recent entries of poultry entering Tiruppur district from Kerala, according to the official. Vehicles carrying poultry will not be allowed until further orders by the State government, he noted.
Nilgiris district collector, J. Innocent Divya, confirmed that poultry from Kerala was not being allowed into the district. As a result, all vehicles carrying poultry from Kerala are being stopped at the interstate border check-post between Kerala and Tamil Nadu at Gudalur and Pandalur taluks, and are being sent back.
Teams from the Health Department and the Department of Animal Husbandry are stationed at the check-posts and are ensuring that all incoming vehicles are disinfected.