THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government has decided to give compensation to poultry farmers whose ducks were culled as part of the government's precautionary measures following the outbreak of bird flu, animal husbandry minister K Raju said on Wednesday.
He said that a central team will reach Kerala on Thursday to assess the bird flu situation in the state. As per the compensation announced, the farmers will be given Rs 100 for each culled bird that is below 60 days old and Rs 200 each for those above 60 days old. They will also be paid Rs 5 per egg.
“The culling process in the district will be completed by Thursday. The rapid response teams (RRT) have culled 37,656 birds in Alappuzha. At least 23,857 birds perished in the district. As per the details collected by the officials, the district has lost a total of 61,513 birds,” the minister said. The bird flu was confirmed in Nedumudi, Thakazhi, Pallipad and Karuvatta grama panchayats in Alappuzha. As per the central guidelines, the culling process is on within the 1-km radius of the four hot spots in Kuttanad.
In addition to ducks, the rapid response teams have been ordered to slaughter chickens and other domesticated birds as well. As many as 7,729 birds belonging to a single farmer were culled in Neendoor in Kottayam. The minister said the virus cannot affect humans and that as there are chances for its mutation, health officials will monitor the hot spots and adjoining places.
He also directed the officials to tighten their vigilance and prevent disease spread. Forest officials have been asked to keep a tab on the deaths of migratory birds die in the district. The district animal husbandry officials team will collect the samples and send for examination if any bird dies in the district with symptoms of bird flu.
The minister also added that the outbreak probably originated from migratory birds.
At the same time, farmers, who have lost their ducks, have raised protest pointing out that the government has not made an increase in the compensation announced at the time of bird flu outbreaks in 2014.
Samuel K, a duck farmer from Pallipad, said costs have increased since then. “They had announced the same compensation in 2014. It is not acceptable,” he said.