There's good news for chicken lovers in India as the Ministry of Agriculture has declared the country free from the highly contagious avian influenza (H5N1) or bird flu even as it stressed the need for continued surveillance. The outbreak of bird flu, an infectious viral disease of birds, was reported at various epicentres in nine states and Union Territories during October 2016 and February 2017. The government has informed the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) last month that it has been free from Avian Influenza from June 6 this year and notification to this effect has been issued.
Bird flu affects mainly the domestic poultry. Commonly known as bird flu, the disease usually spreads from bird to bird but may sometimes spread from birds to humans. Though human to human transmission - which takes place mostly after intimate and constant physical contact - is rare, the infection is virulent and, in an estimated 60% of cases, fatal. There is no vaccine against H5N1.
Notably, there were reports of outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian influenza at various epicenters in Delhi, Gwalior (MP), Rajpura (Punjab), Hissar (Haryana), Bellary (Karnataka), Allappuzha and Kottayam (Kerala), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Daman (Daman) and Khordha and Angul (Odisha during October, 2016 to February, 2017. In Delhi, the National Zoological Park was shut down after the deaths of nine water birds from Avian Influenza last year.
According to a statement issued by the Department of Animal Husbandry under the agriculture ministry, all the outbreaks of Avian Influenza (HPAI) mentioned above were notified to OIE and the control and containment operations were carried out as per the Action Plan on Preparedness, Control and Containment of Avian Influenza. "India has declared itself free from avian influenza (H5N1) from June 6, 2017 and notified the same to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE)," said in a statement.
In areas on the one-kilometre radius of the outbreak location, the Government took measures, including culling, disinfection and clean-up, to contain the spread of avian influenza.
"Post the surveillance, the state has shown no evidence of presence of the disease... There has been no further outbreak reported in the country thereafter," the ministry said.
In a letter to chief secretaries of states, the Centre had emphasised the need for "continued surveillance especially in the vulnerable areas bordering infected countries and in areas visited by migratory birds.