Amid the bird flu scare in Maharashtra, two pond herons were found in Thane district's Kalyan town on Tuesday.
According to reports, the dead pond herons were found at Gauripada in Kalyan (West). The locals spotted the dead birds and informed about the incident to the concerned authorities.
While the cause of death has not been confirmed yet, and the samples have been sent to the laboratory for further examination.
As many as 242 bird deaths due to avian influenza or bird flu were confirmed in the state on Tuesday, the Maharashtra government said on Tuesday. It took the toll since January 8, when the first bird flu death was detected in the state, to 1,858.
The outbreak has been reported from many districts across the state including Mumbai, Thane, Ratnagiri, Nashik, Ahmednagar, Parbhani, Beed, Latur, Amravati, and Nagpur. However, Pune, Palghar, Raigad, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur, Jalna, Hingoli, Washim, and Buldhana have not seen any cases so far.
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra government has issued an advisory on Tuesday. "It is advised that the dead birds should not be touched with bare hands and post mortem of such dead birds should not be conducted. The birds should not be disposed off without intimation to the local veterinarian," the government said.
On Tuesday, fresh bird deaths were reported in Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday amid cases of avian influenza in 10 states and union territories, with the Centre saying it has issued advisories regarding testing protocols and maintaining sufficient stock of PPE kits required for culling operations.
In Uttarakhand, where nearly 300 birds, mostly crows, have died over the last few days, an high alert has been sounded after samples tested positive for the influenza, while in Maharashtra, a culling exercise was ordered in parts of Latur district.
Till Monday, the bird flu outbreak was confirmed in Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and Gujarat.
(Inputs from PTI)
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