An alert has been sounded across Karnataka, after the outbreak of bird flu in a privately-owned poultry farm at Melkera village of Humnabad taluk in Bidar district.
A total of 1.5 lakh heads of chicken of the private farm will now be culled to prevent the outbreak of avian influenza (H5N1 virus) to rest of the farms and areas.
Poultry farm owners have been instructed to take precautionary measures to prevent infection of chicken with H5N1 virus. In the case of viral infection, scientists have advised farm owners not to sell or move any of the birds/eggs and material out of farm. They have been instructed to adopt adequate bio-security measures.
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The State has around 7,000 poultry farms, which are both layers and broilers varieties. The farms have stock of more than five crore birds. The state’s daily egg production is about 1.2 crore, officials of the Animal Husbandry told The Hindu.
Minister for Animal Husbandry A. Manju, who chaired an emergency meeting with top officials of the Department on Sunday, told presspersons that the outbreak of bird flu was found in the farm owned by Ramesh Gupta. The State Government would provide compensation to the farmer immediately after culling. It was decided to cull all poultry birds within one-km radius of the infected farm.
Doctors and scientists of Institute of Animal Health and Veterinary, Biologicals, Bengaluru, visited the private farm in Bidar and collected the samples for testing. The samples were tested at National Institute High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal, and samples tested positive for H5N1, the Minister said.
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A team of experts would oversee the process of culling and preventive measures being taken to contain its spread.
A team comprising Joint Director IAH&VB has been constituted to visit Bidar and take all measures to control and keep ready all the required materials, Rapid Response Team for culling birds and for sanitation. The Minister said, “There is no need for panic as there are no others farms in the village.”
The officials of the Health and Family Welfare Department have appealed to the public not to consume chicken infected with H5N1, since it can be transmitted to humans.
The farm owners must step-up vigil and surveillance of potential sources of infection, such as indigenous chicken and poultry farm chicken, ducks and migratory birds.
The spread of the disease not only entails loss to poultry farmers and the government because of stamping out of infected birds, but also in terms of payment of compensation to farmers and commercial loss in trade, officials said.
Farmers have been told to regularly conduct inspections in the poultry farms and closely monitor the movement of wild and migratory birds, who carry the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus.
To provide all kinds of assistance to poultry farmers, a control room has been opened and interested can call 9481888904.