Amid bird flu scare, dead crows trigger panic in Delhi

NEW DELHI: The death of more than a dozen crows over the last few days in Mayur Vihar Phase 3 area of the national capital has triggered panic among residents.

Soon after the reports of the dead crows, the Delhi government officials have collected multiple samples and sent them for tests. 

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is monitoring the situation of dead crows in A2, central park located in Mayur Vihar Phase III, directed the animal husbandry department to send a rapid response team to the spot. Four samples were collected of the total 17 dead crows, said the government.

“All remaining carcasses were disposed off by deep burial following biosecurity measures and the area was properly sanitised. Instructions were also given to the attendants in the park to report further mortality of the birds, if any.” 

“Two crows were found dead in DDA Park, Dwarka and one sample was collected. The collected samples have been submitted to laboratory, Palam for sending those to National Institute of High Security Animal Disease, ICAR, Bhopal,” government said in a statement.

At least 16 crows were found dead in DDA Park, Hastsal Village in west district and four samples were sent to Northern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Jalandhar, the government informed further. Earlier, Sisodia had said that there is no case of bird flu in Delhi yet and asked officials to keep a close watch on poultry birds coming in from neighbouring states to prevent any infection. 

At least eleven rapid response teams have been set up to monitor Delhi’s potential hotspots, officials said.“The bird flu situation is like a double whammy for us, the restaurant owners. First it was coronavirus and now the scare about the bird flu spread. Both have left the business in very bad shape. Such incidents create a lot of panic among public, we are taking all the precautions. We have even stopped eating eggs ourselves,” said Kamendra Singh, resident of Kondli, which is neighboring, Mayur Vihar phase 3 and owns two restaurants.

Meanwhile, around 50 birds have died in the national capital over the last three to four days.The Centre had on Wednesday had said that avian influenza or bird flu outbreak has been reported at 12 epicentres in Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, while Haryana is on high alert due to unusual mortality at poultry farms in Panchkula.