India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Pawar says, bird flu virus entered from Bangladesh, WB's two more districts get affected

<SMALL>From our ANI Correspondent
</SMALL><SMALL></SMALL>
New Delhi/Kolkata, Jan 23: Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Wednesday said that the deadly H5N1 virus that has infected nine districts of West Bengal has entered from Bangladesh.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=3 width=255 align=left border=0><TBODY><TR><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


Pawar said that the Centre has warned the bordering states to keep a check on poultry smuggling, adding, "But I think they mustn't have paid attention."

West Bengal Animal Resources Development Minister Anisur Rahaman confirmed that Cooch Behar and Hooghly districts were also affected by bird flu.

"Samples of chicken sent from Cooch Behar and Hooghly districts to the Highrisk Security Disease Laboratory (HSDL) in Bhopal yesterday tested positive," Rahaman said on Wednesday.

"We have been informed by the Centre. Steps will be taken accordingly," he said.

Meanwhile, in Bihar and Jharkhand are reportedly getting into the grip of H5N1 virus where poultry farmers reported fresh cases of poultry deaths.

State authorities have started collecting blood samples from Idgaon village of Jharkhand that reported the deaths of the birds.

The Bihar Government has ordered culling of chicken in six panchayat areas in Katihar district.

"We have received reports about a suspected case of bird flu at Mohammedpur in Malda district, hardly 5 km from Katihar. We are in constant touch with the West Bengal government about it," Deputy Chief Minister and Animal And Fishery Resources Minister, Sushil Modi told reporters.

Border officials in Tripura are taking steps to check the entry of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu virus from Bangladesh, even as authorities in West Bengal continue to struggle to contain the disease.

Through Tripura does not import poultry products from Bangladesh, everyday hundreds of vehicles enter the state from that country.

Health officials have been fumigating vehicles at the India-Bangladesh border, even as border guards seek a vigil to prevent the smuggling of the poultry into the country.

"Officially, we do not import poultry and its produce from Bangladesh. In addition to that there may be chances that poultry and its produce is smuggled into India from Bangladesh. We have sanitized our battalions to see that the smuggling of the poultry is denied," said J. A. Khan, Inspector General, Border Security Force (BSF).

Alarmed over the outbreak of bird flu in West Bengal, a high alert has been sounded in neighbouring Meghalaya to prevent the spread of the disease in that state.

According to state officials, all veterinary officials, especially those posted along the India-Bangladesh border have been directed to take preventive measures.

An extensive awareness campaign has also been introduced.

The State Government has already banned the entry of chickens in the state from outside. Additional gates have been set along the border to keep an eye.

About 160,000 poultry birds have been culled so far, while over 100,000 birds have succumbed to the disease.

http://www.dailyindia.com/show/210116.php/Pawar-says-bird-flu-virus-entered-from-Bangladesh-WBs-two-more-districts-get-affected

[drjagathv]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Migratory bird dies in Howrah


Staff Reporter


<HR color=lightblue noShade>Cause of death not known
Authorities keeping a watch

<HR color=lightblue noShade>

Kolkata: With six districts in West Bengal in the grip of bird flu, the death of a migratory bird at the Santragachi Jheel (a water body) in Howrah district on Sunday created a flutter.
However, there was no official explanation on the cause of death. The bird belonged to the Lesser Whistling Teal variety. ?We are yet to receive reports on the samples sent to the Howrah District Veterinary Hospital,? said Sanjib Chakaraborty, District Forest Officer, Howrah.
Another bird of the same variety died on January 5 for reasons not yet known.
The bird could have died because of the weather, Mr. Chakaraborty said.
As migratory birds were also believed to be susceptible to the flu, the authorities were keeping a watch on them.
There were about 5,120 migratory birds, which included cotton teals, pin-tailed ducks, cormorants and night herons at Santragachi, according to a census conducted on January 5, 2008.
The migratory birds usually nest in the area from November to March, leaving only when the young birds learnt to fly.
Authorities at the Alipore Zoological Gardens were also keeping a close watch on the bird population, said zoo Director Subir Chaudhuri. Chicken has been taken off the diet of zoo animals.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/22/stor...2255181300.htm

http://www.huliq.com/48103/bird-flu-spreads-nearly-half-indias-west-bengal-state

Sri Lanka has banned poultry imports from India. Sri Lanka is also alert to the current situation in India.

Dr. V. W. Jagath Vasanthathilaka.
Consultant Rheumatologist Teaching Hospital Kandy.

[drjagathv]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

http://www.huliq.com/48103/bird-flu-...t-bengal-state

Sri Lanka has banned poultry imports from India. Sri Lanka is also alert to the current situation in India.

Dr. V. W. Jagath Vasanthathilaka.
Consultant Rheumatologist Teaching Hospital Kandy.

However, it is extremely difficult to control Migratory birds arriving here in Sri Lanka.

Dr. Vasanthathilaka.

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/01230805/H5N1_Bihar_Jharkhand.html

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 5px"><TD style="BORDER-BOTTOM: #dcdcdc 1px solid" colSpan=2>Bird flu gets closer to Kolkata
</TD></TR><TR style="PADDING-TOP: 5px"><TD class=Dateline vAlign=top>



<!--Content Placeholder --><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=250 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 4px; PADDING-TOP: 4px" align=left></TD></TR><TR><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 10px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 10px" align=left>

ALSO READ:

BIRD FLU: SPECIAL COVERAGE
</TD></TR><TR><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px">
</TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 8px; FONT-SIZE: 12px; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #bfbeaa; TEXT-ALIGN: left">Rate the Story </TD></TR><TR><TD style="PADDING-BOTTOM: 4px; PADDING-TOP: 4px" vAlign=top align=left><SCRIPT language=javascript text="text/javascript"> canvote='Yes'; function PopWindowNoScroll(URL,height,width) { hWindow = window.open(URL,height+width,"width="+width+",heig ht="+height+",resize=no,resizable=no,scrollbars=no ,menubar=no,status=no"); hWindow.focus(); } function rateposition(show_imgno) { if (canvote=='Yes') { for (ui=1;ui<=5;ui++) { mobj=document.getElementById("rate_img" + ui); if (ui<=show_imgno) mobj.src="images/site/ratelightorange.gif" else mobj.src="images/site/ratewhite.gif" } } } function RateStatus(NewRatings,Rems) { Myint=parseInt(NewRatings); //alert(Rems); for (ui=1;ui<=5;ui++) { mobj=document.getElementById("rate_img" + ui); if (ui<=NewRatings) mobj.src="images/site/rateorange.gif" else mobj.src="images/site/ratewhite.gif" } document.getElementById("RateCaption").innerHTML=""+Rems+"" canvote="No"; } function rateoff(show_imgno) { if (canvote=='Yes') { for (ui=1;ui<=5;ui++) { mobj=document.getElementById("rate_img" + ui); if (ui<=show_imgno) mobj.src="images/site/ratelightorange.gif" else mobj.src="images/site/ratewhite.gif" } } } function rateclicked(show_imgno) { if (canvote=='Yes') { document.getElementById("RateCaption").innerHTML="wait..." RateFrameObj=document.getElementById("Rate_Frame") ; dt= new Date(); RateLink="processrating.aspx?id=NEWEN20080039309&r atedas="+show_imgno+"&ch="+dt; RateFrameObj.src=RateLink; canvote="No"; } }</SCRIPT><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR vAlign=center height=17><TD id=RateCaption style="PADDING-RIGHT: 2px" align=right></TD><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"></IMG></TD><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"></IMG></TD><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"></IMG></TD><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"></IMG></TD><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 4px"></IMG></TD></TR><TR height=1><TD><IFRAME id=Rate_Frame name="" src="blank.aspx" frameBorder=0 width=0 scrolling=no height=0></IFRAME></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 8px; FONT-SIZE: 12px; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #bfbeaa; TEXT-ALIGN: left">SMS NDTV </TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 8px; FONT-SIZE: 12px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 8px; COLOR: #000000; PADDING-TOP: 8px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: white; TEXT-ALIGN: left" colSpan=2>For latest headlines SMS NEWS to 56388 (in India) 6388 (in UAE), to 63880(in UK)
</TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD colSpan=2><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 8px; FONT-SIZE: 12px; WIDTH: 325px; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: arial; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #bfbeaa; TEXT-ALIGN: left" colSpan=2>Also Read</TD></TR><TR height=10><TD width=10></TD><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 1px; FONT-SIZE: 12px; MARGIN: 0px; COLOR: #605a5c; FONT-FAMILY: arial" vAlign=top colSpan=2>

• Bird flu spreads further in WB
• Bird flu: Slow culling deepens crisis
• Bird flu: West Bengal govt faces flak
• Bird flu courts controversy amid cover-up claims

</TD></TR><TR height=10 colspan="2"><TD></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE id=MSGB_Tabname style="WIDTH: 100%; BORDER-COLLAPSE: collapse" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #bfbeaa"><TD style="PADDING-LEFT: 3px; COLOR: black" align=left colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR style="PADDING-RIGHT: 3px; PADDING-LEFT: 3px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 3px; COLOR: black; PADDING-TOP: 3px"><TD colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD style="WIDTH: 100%" align=middle colSpan=2></TD></TR><TR><TD style="WIDTH: 50%; COLOR: black" align=middle></TD><TD style="WIDTH: 50%; COLOR: black" align=middle></TD></TR><TR><TD style="WIDTH: 50%" align=middle></TD><TD style="WIDTH: 50%" align=middle></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle></TD><TD align=middle></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE> <!--/div-->
</TD></TR><TR style="FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-FAMILY: arial; TEXT-ALIGN: left" vAlign=top><TD colSpan=2></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD><TD vAlign=top align=left>Monideepa Banerjie

Wednesday, January 23, 2008 (Kolkata)

Bird flu in West Bengal has now come even closer to Kolkata. It has been confirmed in the Hooghly district, which is just 40 kms from the city.

With that, the bravest Kolkatan is throwing in the towel and tossing all chicken - broiler or desi - off the dinner plate.

''Hooghly is virtually next to Kolkata, so the flu can spread since it is a virus. That is why I am scared and not eating chicken,'' said Sumit Das, a shopper.

''The whole picture is frightening, because there is so much spreading out. We don't know where these chicken come from. Is it from the city or from the districts?'' said Manju, another shopper.

The panic is needless, say owners of commercial poultry farms, because bird flu has only hit backyard or desi chicken.

Kolkata mostly eats the broiler variety raised in commercial farms unaffected by the flu. The city's consumption of desi chicken is barely 0.1 per cent.

''Nowhere has it affected any organized poultry broiler industry, only back yard poultry where it has been detected. Kolkata consumes 7 to 10 lakh broiler every week, so there is no need to panic,'' said Prasun Roy, President, Poultry owners committee.

''It is quite natural that the people of Kolkata may be worried because its neighbouring district is Hooghly. We are taking all possible measures to motivate the people. All possible measures are being taken from the Kolkata Police and health department officials,'' said Anisur Rehman, Minister, Animal Resources Development.

But Kolkata is not listening. And the figures speak for themselves.

Kolkata consumes seven to 10 lakh broiler chicken every week. But in the week since bird flu was confirmed on January 16, sales have fallen to three lakh or so and are all set to nosedive in the coming weeks.

''Sales have fallen, customers have disappeared so I am not keeping too much chicken. Prices have also crashed,'' said Shomnath Halder, a shopkeeper.

With Hooghly hit by bird flu and chicken dying in Kolkata's neighbourhood, in the adjoining districts of North and South 24 Parganas and Howrah, Kolkata is no longer splitting hair over desi or broiler chicken.

The panic may be needless but the button has been pressed, and Kolkata is chickening out in the face of the bird flu that remains unchecked.

http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv...209:57:00%20PM#


</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Confusion over culling mars control efforts


Owners wait for culling teams; some have no idea why the birds have to be killed, others say compensation too little
Rajdeep Datta Roy


<!-- topmenu(module1) endss --><!-- article module starts --><!--Article bodyContent-->Tehatta (Nadia), West Bengal: Hriday Kumar Haldar is becoming as restless as the 70-odd birds he has collected in wicker baskets. The peasant, who lives in Srirampur village of Tehatta-1 block in Nadia district, has been sitting around for one- and-a-half hours, waiting for a government culling team to arrive.
“They went around with microphones yesterday announcing that we should collect them so that they don’t have to run around after them,” he said. “But I’ve been waiting since morning and still there’s no sign of them.”
Scores of peasants such as Haldar are in the same predicament. Even as they offer up their only means of livelihood for slaughter following a district-wide move to cull birds to prevent the spread of the dreaded bird flu, the help at hand is almost always never at hand. Price to pay: Officials in Srirampur village of Tehatta-I block in Nandia district, West Bengal, distributing compensation for culled birds. (Photo: Indranil Bhoumik/ Mint)


Villagers in nearby Balarampur and Kanainagar had started losing their birds to a mysterious illness almost a week ago, but even on Tuesday morning, the culling efforts of the Rapid Response Teams, as they have been called by the government, have been anything but rapid. This, despite poultry samples from another block in the district, Haringhata, testing positive for bird flu on Tuesday at the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal.
Hundreds of birds are being sent every week to the laboratory to test for what the World Health Organization (WHO) says is the worst outbreak of bird flu in India.
“It has been decided to build several new laboratories especially in view of the bird flu situation now,” Santanu Kumar Bandyopadhyay, West Bengal’s animal husbandry commissioner, said on Tuesday.
Even as the laboratory clears the backlog, veterinary workers at potentially infected areas wait for the signal to begin culling poultry, often running the risk of the virus spreading.
It now emerges that the culling, where it has already happened, has not been as complete as it should have been.
“Some people in white suits did come yesterday, but left after killing a few as they could not catch the rest,” said Mahboob Ali Mondol of Balarampur village. “Of all the chickens in our village, barely 25&#37; have been killed,” he said. Mondol couldn’t be too far off the mark as in almost all the villages in the block, desi (indigenous) chicken roam around unconcerned.
However, the block development officer of Tehatta-1, when contacted, insisted that culling was on in full swing and the situation was under control.
It is the backyard poultries maintained by small farmers which are said to be the driving force behind the current outbreak of avian influenza in eight districts of Bengal, according to a state animal resources department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“These hens and ducks mix with migratory birds and go swimming in rivers and ponds, thereby helping propagate the virus,” he said.

[hawkeye]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Over 2000 complain of fever, govt says ?it means nothing?

posted online: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 at 02:46:52
Updated: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 at 03:03:00

Kolkata, January 22 About 2,324 cases of people suffering from fever have been reported from the Birbhum district ? Ground Zero of the bird flu outbreak in the state ? in the last five days.

?The West Bengal Government is failing to understand the gravity of the situation,? said Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare P Lakshmi, during a visit to Birbhum on Tuesday.

Lakshmi, who is currently in the state to get a first hand assessment of the culling operations, did not find adequate health infrastructure to combat the bird flu threat. She criticised the state government for acting irresponsibly and lacking seriousness to fight the disease.

?There is no infrastructure, not even qualified doctors. We have sent pills and gear but the required equipment is not in place till date. They do not understand that this is an emergency situation and they should be prepared for it,? she added.

She blamed the state Animal Resource Development department for the spread of the virus to new areas, as it did not carry out culling operations in a swift manner.

The state government, however, maintained that there has been no case of H5N1 virus infecting humans, and tried to play down its own figures of fever cases in Birbhum.

?There is no need to panic. We do not have any reports of humans being infected. Therefore, a few hundred fever cases means nothing,? said Sanchita Bakshi, state director health services.

According to the status report, as many as 707 fever cases were reported from Birbhum district on January 18.

A day later and another 304 people were added to the list.

For January 20, which happened to be a Sunday, the report does not give any figures.

On January 21, 707 more cases were added to the existing figures and today an additional 613 cases of fever were recorded.

The report further stated that that six central rapid response teams are assisting the state government in culling operations.

Five human blood samples taken from South Dinajpur district have tested negative, the report added.

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Commentary

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/01230806/Cooch_Behar_Migratory_Birds.html

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

<TABLE class=TableClas cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD class=heading>Bird flu grips half of Bengal</TD></TR><TR><TD height=11></TD></TR><TR><TD class=author>BS Reporter / Kolkata January 24, 2008</TD></TR><TR><TD height=4></TD></TR><TR><TD style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: url(/images/common/gn_005.gif); BACKGROUND-REPEAT: repeat-x"></TD></TR><TR><TD height=9></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><TABLE class=TableClas cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>The outbreak of bird flu has spread to almost half of West Bengal with Cooch Behar and Hooghly being added today to the list of the affected districts. However, the authorities said they might have to raise the target of culling, set at 2 million spread over seven days. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>Hooghly, situated on the outskirts of Kolkata, is a major supplier of poultry and fish to the markets in the state capital. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>Death of chicken was also reported from Howrah, another district bordering Kolkata. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>Nine districts ? Birbhum, Murshidabad, South Dinajpur, Burdwan, Nadia, Bankura, Malda, Cooch Behar and Hooghly ? out of 19 in the state have so far fallen prey to the avian flu. Initially, the disease was detected in the districts of Bardhaman, Birbhum, Murshidabad and Malda, which share borders with Jharkhand. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>About 150 technical teams from eight states, including Haryana, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa and Jharkhand, are yet to join monitoring of the culling. The H5N1 virus was reported from more blocks in the already-affected Nadia and Murshidabad districts, local administration officials said. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>?Samples of chicken sent from Cooch Behar and Hooghly districts to the High-risk Security Disease Laboratory (HSDL) in Bhopal yesterday tested positive,? Animal Resources Development Minister Anisur Rahaman said today. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>?Steps are being taken to officially notify both districts as bird flu affected for the next course of action, including culling,? Rahaman said. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>The samples which tested positive were from Dinhata in Cooch Behar district and Balagarh in Hooghly district, he said. There was, however, no case of humans beings being affected, the minister said. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>The daily target of culling now was 300,000 with 600 teams on the job from today, he added. Meanwhile, a report from Shillong said Meghalaya had sounded a high alert and an expert team was expected to reach the state tomorrow to oversee precautionary measures. </TD></TR><TR><TD height=5> </TD></TR><TR><TD>State Chief Secretary Ranjan Chatterjee said an extensive awareness campaign has been launched to prevent an outbreak.

http://www.business-standard.com/com...bLeft=0&chkFlg=
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Culling to begin in Raiganj soon
Statesman News Service
RAIGANJ, Jan 23: Officials of North Dinajpur Animal Husbandary Department initiated a move to kill all the birds in a portion of Itahar block of the district. The birds of this region will be killed because the region fell within the 5 km radius from the spot in Chanchal, Malda where bird flu was detected.
Reportedly the animal husbandary department is planning to start killing of such birds tomorrow.
As Chanchal block shares the border with North Dinajpur so some potion of Itahar block such as Gulandar and Surun Grampanchayat of North Dinajpur ~ which came within the 5 km radius from the spot in Chanchal ~ was marked as potential danger zones.
With an objective to gather information about the number of birds to be killed the deputy director of animal hubandary of North Dinajpur, Mr Sajal Bhunia, reached the concerned areas this afternoon with other officers. He moved from place to place to gather information of the number of poultry farms and held a meeting with pradhans of the concerned grampanchayats. The animal husbandary department aslo sought cooperation from the panchayat members of the region.
The additional district magistrate of North Dinajpur Mr Jaideb Saha said, that no cases of flu have been reported yet. But it was the government's guideline to kill all birds in 5km radius from the flu infested spot.
Animal husbandary officials of the district have now been called to carry out government order.
The deputy director of Animal Husbandary of North Dinajpur Mr Sajal Bhunia said: ?Today we visited the concerned areas where birds are to be destroyed .We also held a meeting with the concerned grampanchayats and sought their help to serve our purpose. But when the birds destruction drive will actually start is yet to be fixed up. It will be decided in a meeting with district administration later, added Mr Bhunia.

http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=10&theme=&usrsess=1&id=187255

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

Map of notified area

http://www.wbhealth.gov.in/AI_downloads/Bulletin%20Board/Bird%20Flu%20map.pdf

[HenryN]

Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+

West Bengal intercepts trucks smuggling birds from flu area
Thursday January 24 2008 00:00 IST
<SMALL>ANI</SMALL>

Shaadi.com Matrimonial - Register for FREE

<SMALL>BIRBHUM: Residents in West Bengal intercepted six vehicles smuggling birds from a bird flu infected area.

The six vehicles, which were interpreted by villagers at Nalhati, a bordering village along the Bengal-Jharkhand border, contained stock collected from different places in Birbhum where avian influenza has spread.

Most of the stock was from Rampurhat's two blocks, rest from other blocks and Bakreswar.

The police moved the recovered stock to a riverbank and buried the culled chicken.

Villagers residing in Rampuhat reeling under bird flu have decided to sell off their stock in Jharkhand.

"I was taking the chicken in the tempo when the villagers stopped my vehicle. They called the police and handed us over. We were taking the chicken to Jharkhand," said Imtiaz Ali, the driver who was smuggling out his stock of chickens.

The government compensation for the culled birds is Rs 40 for a country chicken, Rs 30 for poultry and Rs 10 for every chick, which the villagers claim as 'inadequate'.

According to the residents, smugglers offer to buy their stock at higher rates to the government compensation.

Meanwhile, border officials in Tripura have mounted steps to check the entry of the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu virus from Bangladesh, where nearly 25,000 fowls have been culled after the disease outbreak.

Though Tripura doesn't import poultry product from Bangladesh but everyday hundreds of vehicles enter the state from the neighbouring country.

Health officials fumigated vehicles at the border as border guard?s maintained vigil to prevent the smuggling of the poultry into the country.

Seven districts of West Bengal have been affected to the bird flu but officials said the infection could be more widespread as they waited for test.

The virus was also spreading to new areas within already infected districts and the state was finding it difficult to contain the disease.</SMALL>
<SMALL></SMALL>
<SMALL>http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems...Nation&Topic=0</SMALL>

[sharon sanders]

Posts Copied Over from Old Server

Hat - tip Treyfish


Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+
Eggs pile up at godowns


R. Ilangovan



Major importers impose ban on poultry from India fearing bird flu




All consignments of eggs and meat from Namakkal detained at various ports
NECC slashes price of an egg from Rs. 1.60 to Rs. 1.20




NAMAKKAL: Facing yet another bout of serious crisis in just three years, the farmers in Namakkal Zone, country?s major poultry producer, are very much apprehensive about eggs piling up at their farms? backyards.
Major importers such as Dubai, Kuwait and Oman have immediately re-imposed the ban on poultry from India after the outbreak of avian influenza in West Bengal.
Sanitation


And a highly sanitised Namakkal Zone, situated some 1,000 km away from the epicentre of the present outbreak in West Bengal, is the major sufferer despite having healthy and robust birds, which show no symptoms of any viral attack till date.
Almost all the consignments of eggs and meat that left Namakkal Poultry Zone, a week back, are being detained at various ports and destinations following the ban.
Not our fault


For no fault of ours, we suffer, says a poultry owner in Namakkal. Nearly 4 crore eggs are piling up at the godowns of 750 farms in the zone, which produces an average 2.5 crore egg units a day. Of which 70 lakh eggs go to Kerala every day.
The export, as eggs and powder, accounts for about 55 lakh units a day. Local market consumes the rest.
Its poor shelf-life of 40 days worries the farmers most. Unless the containers at various ports are lifted on time, we will incur heavy losses, says a leading exporter.
A conservative estimate is that the export from Namakkal has slumped by 25 per cent in three days.
Meat consumption


The meat in-take has recorded a 20 per cent fall. The big players, however, are expected to wither the blues while the small and medium farmers face a bleak future.
During the outbreak three years ago too, several countries had banned poultry from India.
The poultry industry revived the orders after the World Health Organisation declared India free of bird flu.
The Namakkal zone of the National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC), which is the body to fix the egg price, has slashed it from Rs. 1.60 to Rs. 1.20 a unit to stem over the crisis. http://www.hindu.com/2008/01/22/stor...2254180500.htm







Printer friendly page
__________________
CSI:WORLD This news has been reviewed by worldwide gov't officials and they would prefer you did not know it.
Edit/Delete Message Reply With Quote Multi-Quote This Message Quick reply to this message
Treyfish

[sharon sanders]

Posts Copied Over from Old Server

Hat tip Treyfish -

Default Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+
Tuesday,22 January 2008 5:10 hrs IST
Govt considers financial aid for birdflu-hit farmers

Kolkata: Birdflu has dealt a massive blow to production and revenue of the West Bengal poultry industry compelling the state government to think of financial aid for farmers belonging to BPL and self-help groups (SHGs).

"It is a tremendous setback to the poultry industry and it will take years to make up the loss," the state's Animal Resources Development minister Anisur Rahaman said over phone from Nadia district.

The loss might be enormous taking into consideration -- distribution, sale, marketing and consumption, he said: "This includes birds dying from bird flu as well as culling." Describing the outbreak as 'unprecedented', Rahaman said the poultry industry, would face a hard time "if the situation continues for some more days". The minister said his department has been asked to ascertain the extent of loss and prepare a plan of action to meet the situation.

Since poultry farming would not be allowed for three months in the affected districts, the state government would like to extend financial aid to BPL poultry farmers and SHGs with the situation turning normal, he said.

"We have not yet worked out the extent of loss as yet to farmers in the unorganised sector as we are busy tackling the birdflu outbreak," the minister said. "We plan to distribute chicks to these farmers when the state is free of the H5N1 virus," he added.



http://week.manoramaonline.com/cgi-b...8768&BV_ID=@@@
__________________
CSI:WORLD This news has been reviewed by worldwide gov't officials and they would prefer you did not know it.
Edit/Delete Message Reply With Quote Multi-Quote This Message Quick reply to this message
Treyfish

[sharon sanders]

Posts Copied Over from Old Server

Hat Tip Treyfish -


Default Re: India - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 21+
Human samples test negative for bird flu
23 Jan 2008, 0009 hrs IST,Kounteya Sinha,TNN
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/p...s?msid=1784511 Print http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/p...s?msid=1784513 Save http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/p...s?msid=1784493 EMail http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/p...s?msid=2010364 Write to Editor

NEW DELHI: The Centre on Tuesday heaved a sigh of relief after blood samples and throat swabs taken from five residents of Murshidabad, suspected with symptoms of bird flu, tested negative.

Dr Shiv Lal, director of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (Delhi), one of the three labs which tested the five samples, told TOI: "We received five samples from National Institute of Cholera and Enetric Diseases (NICED), Kolkata, all of which have tested negative. Even tests carried out at NICED met the same results. National Institute of Virology in Pune is yet to complete the tests as the samples reached them only on Monday night."

He added: "Earlier on Sunday, three other human samples sent to NICD from Sou-th Dinajpur tested negative."

This is India's fourth outbreak of avian influenza in birds. Not a single human case of avian influenza has been reported so far.

The Union health ministry has meanwhile asked the state to carry out random sampling of humans for the H5N1 virus. The ministry also dispatched fresh stocks of one lakh capsules of Tamiflu to Bengal on Monday along with 2,500 masks and protective gear. Fifty additional bottles of Tamiflu syrup were also sent on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, culling has been intensified in Bengal. The 258 rapid response teams culled a 2.42 lakh poultry, destroyed 88,252 eggs and about 3,000 kg of feed material. Over 80,000 poultry was culled in South Dinajpur in just three days.

Mopping operations have also been completed while disinfection will be resumed on Wednesday. Till Tuesday, Rs 18 lakh compensation had already been disbursed.

Expert teams plan to cull an additional 20 lakh chickens in the next week. The virus has killed over 1.13 lakh poultry birds in West Bengal till now. The Centre is sending in teams from eight other states, including Haryana, Assam, Maharashtra, Orissa and Jharkhand, to try and contain its spread.

An official said: "Veterinary workers from other states are being roped in and the target for culling has been upped to 21 lakh birds in the next seven days." HSADL, Bhopal, on Tuesday confirmed positive results for avian influenza on samples sent from Krishnanagar-I and Haringhata blocks of Nadia district, Ktugram, Jamuria and Galsi blocks of Burdwan district and Nalhati-I and Bolpur-Sriniketan blocks of Birbhum district.

On the other hand, several samples sent from Howrah, South 24 Parganas, North 24 Parganas, Hooghly, Kolkata and West Midnapur tested negative.

In Birbhum district, two trucks carrying chickens bound for Jharkhand were detained on Tuesday at Nalhati as the government has banned movement of poultry from bird flu-affected districts.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/I...ow/2722471.cms

__________________
CSI:WORLD This news has been reviewed by worldwide gov't officials and they would prefer you did not know it.
Edit/Delete Message Reply With Quote Multi-Quote This Message Quick reply to this message
Treyfish