Bird flu deaths in Maharashtra have been confirmed across Mumbai, Thane, Konkan, Marathwada and Vidarbha regions, prompting the state to put all 36 districts on alert. In Mumbai Metropolitan Region and adjoining areas, crow carcasses from Vartak Nagar in Thane were sent for tests while fresh samples from Dapoli in Ratnagiri were found to contain the virus strain H5N1.
Apart from mass culling of 80,000 chickens in Parbhani, the administration has asked animal husbandry staff to mount a vigil at poultry farms in their jurisdiction. Foresters have been told to monitor natural habitats for bodies of migratory birds including herons and those of native varieties such as crows and parakeets. In urban centres, ward-levels checks have been advised on shops stocking poultry products. Mumbai and Thane are asking citizens to report bird deaths on civic helplines.
As of now, affected districts are Mumbai, Thane, Ratnagiri, Parbhani, Beed, Latur, Akola, Chandrapur, Amravati and Gondia, said an official. Of 1,205 birds reported dead so far, 1,112 are poultry and rest are from the wild. Parbhani with 843 cases and Latur with 240 have the most casualties, said a senior official.
Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray while reviewing the outbreak on Monday, said there was no need to panic as the infection did not transmit to humans. He held a meeting with district collectors and asked the animal husbandry wing to start the process of setting up an upgraded laboratory to carry out bird flu tests in the state. Currently, all samples are being sent to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal.
Thane civic officials said they have sent carcasses of crows for tests to Pune. Some of them may have died while scavenging rodents that were poisoned by locals, they said. However, officials said they would reserve comment till lab test reports arrived. Animal Husbandry Assistant Commissioner Mukund Londhe said crows found dead in a dumping ground in Dapoli were confirmed to be H5N1 positive. “The report from Bhopal on Monday confirmed it through RT-PCR test,” he said,
Under the protocol, curbs may be put in place in a radius of 1km around spots where bird flu deaths are reported and culling may be carried out in such areas if fatalities are high, said officials.
Sunil Kedar, minister for animal husbandry, said the state may put restrictions on movement around infected spots. Kedar reiterated that there was no ban on consumption of eggs or chicken. He said they could be consumed if precautions were taken like cooking or boiling it at 70-80 degrees Celsius (see graphic).