Bird Flu Outbreak LIVE Updates: Delhi, Maharashtra on High Alert as Samples Test Positive for Avian Flu; Mass Culling of Birds Begins

Bird Flu: Mathura Varsity Issues Advisory, Stressed on Biosecurity | Biosecurity may help prevent the spread of bird flu in poultry farms, said a Pt Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Veterinary University official while issuing an advisory here on Sunday. Here are some points: 

◕  Biosecurity of newly purchased birds virtually acts as preventive medicine for poultry farms since vital source of virus for poultry is other infected birds, university Dean Pankaj Kumar Shukla told reporters prior to the release of the advisory for farmers and poultry farm owners. Biosecurity refers to measures aimed at preventing the spread of harmful viruses to animals and birds. He said since the infection spreads through used food, urine, reuse of pots of infected birds, clothes and shoes of employees, avoiding such things may prove productive.

◕ Shukla said in chickens, the symptoms include coughing, sneezing and abnormal respiratory sounds. Birds may show nervous system disorders such as the inability to stand, twisting of the neck, abnormal positions of head and legs, huddling, ruffled feathers, decreased activity and at times diarrhea, he said. Shukla advised bird keepers to consult veterinary doctors or poultry consultants immediately after the symptoms are detected since there is no set treatment for the disease.

◕ To prevent infection, keep wild birds away since they are a reservoir of influenza viruses, he said stating the advisory. According to him, contaminated poultry manure, contact with recovered birds, inadequate cleaning and disinfection of farm house, improper hygiene and no restriction on entry of human beings and animal are the other sources of infection.

◕ He said active chlorine solution can be used for the cleaning of equipment and calcium hydroxide solution may be utilised for the treatment of walls. Rectified spirit or sanitisers should be used for cleaning of hands and feet of poultry farm workers, he added. Extremes of heat and dryness can inactivate relatively unstable viruses, he stressed. The dean said special arrangements have been made to prevent infection in the poultry farm of the university. The focus is on cleanliness of area, employees and habitat of the birds with a ban on outsiders and regular use of foot bath, he added.

Kanpur Zoo Shut After Bird Flu Confirmed in Dead Fowls | The Kanpur Zoological Park has been closed for visitors till further orders after samples taken from two dead birds found there tested positive for the avian influenza virus, an official said on Sunday. The area up to one kilometre of the zoo has been declared an infected zone and the culling of birds has begun there, said Additional District Magistrate (City) Atul Kumar. "Four fowls and two parrots were found dead in the zoo in the last five days. Of these, two birds tested positive," Kumar said. According to the official, the samples of dead birds were sent to the animal disease laboratory in Bhopal which confirmed the presence of H-5 strain of bird flu in them. The zoo has been closed for visitors and morning walkers. The hospital enclosure where the infected birds had been placed has also been shut down," Kumar said. 

The bird flu outbreak, that is being reported across several states, has also been confirmed in Maharashtra.

Bird Flu Confirmed in Maharashtra | Bird flu has been confirmed as the cause of death of around 900 hens in the last few days at a poultry farm in Maharashtra's Parbhani district, a senior official said on Monday. The district administration has now decided to cull nearly 8,000 birds in Murumba village where these hens died, Collector Deepak Muglikar told PTI. Earlier, Muglikar on Saturday said around 900 hens had died at a poultry farm, run by a Self-Help Group (SHG), in the village and their samples were sent for testing. "The cause of the death has been confirmed as bird flu. Hence, we have decided to cull all the birds in one-km radius of the place where these deaths took place," the collector said.

Bird Flu Confirmed in Delhi | Testing of eight samples sent to a Bhopal-based laboratory has confirmed bird flu in Delhi, officials said on Monday. All eight samples -- four from a park in Mayur Vihar Phase 3, three from Sanjay Lake and one from Dwarka -- have been found positive for avian influenza, Dr Rakesh Singh from the animal husbandry unit of the Development Department said. The report of the test results arrived on Monday morning, he said. A drive to cull ducks has begun at the famous Sanjay Lake, where 10 ducks were found dead recently, Singh added. Officials earlier said that around 50 crows had died in Central Park, Mayur Vihar Phase 3 in a span of three to four days.