Amid Bird Flu Scare, Centre, States Step Up Efforts To Contain Spread..

New Delhi: Across India, lakhs of birds have been found dead in the last 10 days. At least four states - Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Rajasthan- have confirmed bird flu, sounding an alert as the authorities step up efforts to contain the spread. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are also vigilant after 12,000 ducks found dead  in the last few days in neighboring Kerala. 

In the northern part of the country, Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana, close to Himachal Pradesh, have also started investigating samples amid the scare. Bird flu or avian flu viruses can infect domestic poultry and other bird and animal species. The disease is "zoonotic" but infection in humans has not been reported in India, according to the government; 12 epicenters in four contained states have been identified and the Centre has issued an advisory. A control room has been set up in Delhi to monitor the situation.

Here is your ten-point cheat sheet on this big story:

1. In Kerala, around 24,000 birds, mostly ducks, were culled on Tuesday after the H5N8 strain of Avian Influenza was confirmed in parts of Alappuzha and Kottayam. Sale of poultry, and related products has been regulated only in the affected parts. H5N8 strain, according to officials, remains localized, and has not spread beyond the affected regions. Four epicenters have been identified by the Centre in the southern state.

2. Control rooms and Quick Response Teams have also been set up in Alappuzha and Kottayam. "The decision on compensation to farmers is to be finalised after discussions with the Chief Minister," Forest Minister K Raju said earlier this week. Tamil Nadu has set up 26 check posts - bordering Kerala - to monitor the transport of poultry and related products.

3. Four lakh poultry birds have found dead in Haryana's Panchkula district alone in the last 10 days. The state, however, is yet to confirm the viral outbreak. A probe is on, authorities have said.

4. Himachal Pradesh became the fourth state on Tuesday after Kerala, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to confirm the avian flu. Around 2,700 migratory birds, most of them bar-headed geese, were found dead. Slaughter, sale, purchase and export of any poultry birds, fish of any breed and their related products, including eggs, meat, chicken, have been banned in Kangra , marked as an epicenter.

5. In Madhya Pradesh, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will hold an emergency meet today; Mandsaur, Indore, Malwa have reported cases of bird flu. In Indore, the health department, which is already battling against the COVID-19 virus, has now began door-to-door medical check-up of people living in areas where hundreds of crows were found dead. Maharashtra, which shares border with Madhya Pradesh, has not yet reported any cases.

6. In Rajasthan, bird flu has been confirmed in four districts- Jaipur, Kota, Baran and Jhalawar. A total of 717 crows have died so far; 246 died in the past 24 hours. Poultry from Madhya  Pradesh is not being allowed into the bordering districts. Special teams have been sent to monitor the situation.

7. National parks and wildlife sanctuaries have been asked to take precautions.

8. In a statement, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying said: "The measures suggested to the affected states to contain the disease and prevent further spread as per the Action Plan on Avian Influenza include strengthening the biosecurity of poultry farms, disinfection of affected areas, proper disposal of dead birds or carcasses, timely collection and submission of samples for  confirmation and further surveillance, intensification of surveillance plan as well as the general guidelines for prevention of disease spread from affected birds to poultry and human."

9. India reported the first outbreak of avian influenza in 2006. Bird flu viruses have been circulating worldwide for centuries with four known major outbreaks recorded in the last century, the government data shows.

10. In India, the disease spreads mainly b y migratory birds coming into the country during winter months from September-October to February- March. The secondary spread by human handling (through fomites) cannot be ruled out, according to the government.

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    Written by RAJENDRA GOKHALE | CHENNAI

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