Bird flu scare: 100 chickens found dead at poultry farm in Maharashtra's Thane, District Collector issues statement

As many as 100 chickens were found dead at a poultry farm in Vehloli village of Shahapur tehsil in Thane district, said Thane District Magistrate and Collector Rajesh J Narvekar on Friday.

Considering the bird flu threat, the samples have been sent to a lab in Pune. He further said that around 25,000 birds falling in a kilometre radius of the affected poultry farm will be killed within the next few days. The district animal husbandry department has been ordered to take measures to control the infection.

Meanwhile, Thane District Collector Rajesh Narvekar also assured that there was no cause for concern in other parts of the district in Maharashtra.

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Speaking to the media, Collector Narvekar said the district administration has issued a notification for the culling of birds in the farms within a one-km radius of the affected farm. Apart from bird flu cases reported from Shahapur, no cases have been detected in any other part of the district, he said, assuring people there was no cause for panic. 

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Meanwhile, at least 15,600 broiler birds had been culled in Shahapur in compliance with the standard operating procedure till Friday morning, the PRO of the Thane Zilla Parishad Pankaj Chavan said. Apart from this, 7,962 layer birds, 20 ducks, 980 eggs, litter feed, etc have also been culled, he said, adding that the process of culling is underway. The district administration is monitoring the situation closely to prevent the spread to other locations, the official said. 

Avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, is an infectious viral disease of birds (especially wild waterfowl such as ducks and geese). Wild birds can carry the virus without showing symptoms of it and transmit it to poultry through their feathers or feces.