Bird flu outbreak in Keranga again, culling from today

BHUBANESWAR:: (ONT bureau) :27/12 With vian influenza H5N1 reported from Khurda’’s Keranga village for the first time after 2011-12, the Odisha Government on Monday ordered culling of the poultry birds in the infected area from Tuesday.

After unusual mortality was reported among chicken in Keranga, Fisheries and Animal Resources Development Department had sent samples to National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) at Bhopal. The samples tested positive for H5N1 virus.
Basing on the advisory of the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries under the Ministry of Agriculture, an area in 1 km radius of Keranga (epicentre) was demarcated as infected zone, Commissioner-cum- Secretary Bishnupada Sethi said.

Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) have been mobilised to take up culling from Tuesday. Officers, who were engaged during the last outbreak of bird flu in 2011-12, have been asked to participate in the operational work of control and report to the Chief Divisional Veterinary Officer, Khordha Dr Manas Ranjan Mohapatra.

In fact, an initial survey of the veterinary wing had pegged the number of birds at 1,998 but a subsequent enumeration saw that villagers had started deflating the number of birds whose count stood at 1,200. Sub-Collector and Tehsildar visited the place to convince villagers not to suppress the number of birds since it could have hazardous impact.