In wake of bird flu scare more than 1,500 birds were culled by the authority in Gujarat till Wednesday evening as the fatal disease came to surface in the State after a gap or around a decade.
The State health department has sound alert and declared 10-km radius around a poultry facility in Hathijan area near Ahmedabad to be a ‘regulated zone’, restricting all movement of birds, eggs, bird droppings, farm machinery and any other equipment in this area.
The steps to cull birds were initiated once the samples of seven dead birds and three blood serums of live birds from facility of a non-government organisation Asha Foundation’s Hathijan facility tested positive.
Gujarat’s Animal Husbandry Minister Babu Bokhiria said that the authority had culled birds as per the norms of World Health Organisation and guidelines issued by the Government of India. Ahmedabad collector Avantika Singh said that 12 rapid response teams had been deployed at Hathijan and had begun sanitising the area. So far, no case of H1N1 recorded from any part, said Singh.
According to Himanshu Bhatt, founder of Asha Foundation, the NGO received 80 guinea fowls and 40 turkeys rescued from Crawford Market of Mumbai. In the past six days, seven of the turkeys died, he said, adding that subsequently he informed the animal husbandry department of the state. Taking quick action, the department sent the samples to National Institute of High Security Animal Disease (NIHSAD) in Bhopal,” Bhatt informed.
The State Government has also put all the beat guards in several bird sanctuaries across the State on high-alert. Gujarat has five major bird sancturaies at Nal Sarovar (Ahmedabad-Surendranagar), Thol (Mehsana), Khadija (Jamnagar), Porbandar and Kutch. During winters, these bird sanctuaries attract a lot of tourists. Other than bird sanctuaries, the government has instructed the civil hospital in Ahmedabad to be prepared in case of any human contracting the virus.
Bird flu primarily happens in birds, which carry the virus naturally. If it spreads to other birds, then they can die. The humans, who directly handle these birds, are at high-risk of contracting this virus and can prove fatal.
“The symptoms in the beginning would be cough, cold or headache, if your immunity level is high. However, if the immunity level of the person is low, it could lead to severe chest infection too,” Dr Bipin Patel of medicine department at Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad said. Ahmedabad Civil Hospital has set up a separate ward with 20 beds to treat possible cases of bird flu.
The century old Mysuru Zoo will be closed till February 2 due to the outbreak of avian influenza (hsn8) traced in a few wild birds in the zoo. In a press release Zoo Executive Director K Kamala said that in view of the confirmation of the avian influenza the board has decided to close the zoo as a precautionary measure till February 2.
A report from National Institute of High Security and Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), and the Commissioner Department of Animal Husbandry, Karnataka have confirmed avian influenza in free ranging and ranging and migratory birds which died at Mysore Zoo premises.
She said that on December 28 last year one spot billed pelican and 3 greyed goose died in ponds in the zoo premises.
Samples were sent to national institute Bangalore on December 30. Both the birds found died in the same pond. The carcasses were sent to HSNB Bengaluru for further investigation. Both the dead birds are migratory and ranging.
Meanwhile the Karnataka Minister for Forests and Environment B Ramanath Rai confirmed about the avian influenza at Mysuru Zoo and said the authorities have decided to close the Zoo as precautionary measure following the outbreak of HSN8.
“I was informed by the authorities on the closure and it is the right step as we have to ensure the safety of other birds and animals. This was an emergency and at such situations, there is no need to consult anyone to take a decision," Rai said in Mysuru.
But the Chairperson of the Zoo Authority of Karnataka (ZAK) Mallige Veeresh said she was not happy with the decision. “I was not informed about the decision and there was no need to close the Zoo for one month as the avian influenza virus does not affect humans,” she said.
The avian influenza strain found in the dead birds does not affect humans and there is no need for the public to worry about bird flu in the Zoo, veterinary experts said. The case of bird flu detected in Mysuru Zoo pertains to migratory birds and not local birds.
Officials from the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences have ruled out the possibility of bird flu spreading as the Zoo is an enclosed premise.