Senior government sources said that while this was not bird flu season, all efforts would be taken to ensure quick reporting of any suspicious case.(Reuters) A day after it was reported that China has recorded the first human infection with the H3N8 strain of bird flu, Maharashtra poultry farmers say there is no cause for concern right now. The summer months do not pose any serious threat of spread of avian influenza as migratory birds do not generally come to India during this period, say farmers.
Senior government sources said that while this was not bird flu season, all efforts would be taken to ensure quick reporting of any suspicious case.
In China, a four year old boy in the central Henan province has tested positive for this strain of the virus. The patient has been in contact with poultry but doctors have ruled out any chance of human to human spread of the virus. The H3N8 strain is in circulation since 2002 and affects dogs and horses too.
India has never isolated this strain, said Dr Srilankeshwar Waghole of Satara-based Bhairavnath Poultry farms. Bird flu, he pointed out, is mostly seasonal with cases dipping significantly post February. Migratory birds are the main carriers of bird flu and this time of the year, chances of them arriving in India are low, he said.
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“We are completely safe in our country and there is no chance of any infected poultry or egg getting here,” said Vasantkumar Shetty, president of Poultry Breeders and Farmers Association in Maharashtra.
A report from the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) shows that majority of the outbreaks in the past were attributed to H5 or H1 strains of the virus. In the month of March and April, all the outbreaks worldwide were attributed to H5N1 or H5N8 subvariants. At present, 440 outbreaks in 16 countries have been reported worldwide.
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