Centre Confirms Bird Flu Outbreak in 13 States

Bird flu outbreak has been confirmed in nine states for poultry birds and 12 states for crow/migratory/wild birds.

The H5N1 Avian Influenza (bird flu) hit the city of Bengaluru after a gap of five years. Image used for representation. 

(Photo: Reuters)

Cases of bird flu have been confirmed in 13 states so far, of which avian influenza has been reported in poultry birds from nine states, and in wild birds from 12 states, the Union Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying confirmed on Saturday.

As of 23 January, outbreaks of avian influenza (bird flu) have been confirmed in nine states (Kerala, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Punjab) for poultry birds and in 12 states (Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab) for crow/migratory/wild birds, said the ministry in a statement.

However, crow/pigeon samples submitted from Rudraprayag, Lansdowne Forest Range, and Paudi Forest Range of Uttarakhand; pigeon samples from Sriganganagar district of Rajasthan; and crow and peacock samples from Fatehpur district of Uttar Pradesh have been found negative for Avian Influenza, the statement added.

Control and containment operations (cleaning and disinfection) are going on in the affected epicentres of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, and Kerala.

Compensation is paid to the farmers whose poultry birds, eggs, and poultry feed are culled/disposed off by the state, as per the action plan. The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) provides funds to states/UTs on a 50:50 sharing basis under the ASCAD component of its LH & DC Scheme, said the ministry.

All the states are reporting to the department on a daily basis regarding the control measures adopted by them, based on the Revised Action Plan for Prevention, Control and Containment of Avian Influenza 2021, said the statement.

(Published in an arrangement with IANS.)