69,000 birds culled in Kerala; MP bans chicken import

Thiruvananthapuram/Bhopal/Thane/Chandigarh/Jaipur: Over 69,000 birds including ducks and chicken were culled in the districts of Alappuzha and Kottayam to contain the H5N8 strain of bird flu, Kerala Animal Husbandry Minister K Raju said on Wednesday.

The Minister said 19 Rapid Response Teams have been engaged in culling birds in both the districts and the regions suspected to have infected the birds will be sanitised on Thursday. However, it's possible that the virus may mutate.So we have to remain alert," Raju told reporters. He said the ban on sale of bird meat and eggs in these regions will continue.

"The state cabinet which met today has decided to compensate the farmers for culling their birds.Culled birds which are over two-month-old will be given Rs 200 each and those under the age of two-months will be compensated at Rs 100 each," the minister said.

He also said eggs destroyed due to avian flu will be given a compensation of Rs 5 each. The minister said 61,513 birds including ducks and chicken have been culled in Alappuzha while 7,729 were culled in Kottayam. Culling of ducks, hens and other domestic birds in and around one km radius of the affected areas in Alappuzha and Kottayam districts will be conducted as per the guidelines issued by the government.

Madhya Pradesh will not allow entry to chicken consignments from Kerala and other southern states for next 10 days in view of the bird flu scare in MP, State Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said. Chouhan also said his government was issuing directives to ban the transportation of chicken consignments from these states to the border districts of Madhya Pradesh.

The Centre said Avian Influenza, or the bird flu outbreak, has been reported at 12 epicentres in four states -- Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh -- and advisories have been issued to contain further spread of the infection in poultry ducks, crows and migratory birds.

Other states have been asked to keep a vigil on any unusual mortality amongst birds. The current bird flu outbreak is reported barely a few months after India in September 30, 2020 declared the country free from the disease.

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot instructed officials to maintain special vigil in view of death of crows and other birds due to avian influenza.

Four birds were found dead at Sukhna Lake and its surrounding areas of Chandigarh, officials said on Wednesday.

As many as 15 pond herons were found dead under mysterious circumstances at a housing complex in Maharashtra's Thane city on Wednesday, a civic official said. The birds were found dead at Vijay Vatrika Housing Complex in Waghbil area of Ghodbunder Road around 3.24 pm, said Santosh Kadam, chief of the regional disaster management cell of the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC).