Friday, February 20, 2009

Bird flu virus detected in east Nepal again

KATHMANDU, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Another case of bird flu virus (H5N1) has been detected in Jhapa district of east Nepal, some 320 km southeast of capital Kathmandu, local news website eKantipur reported on Friday.

H5N1 strain of the avian influenza virus, the causative agent of the dreaded bird flu, has been detected in a chicken sample collected from Sharanamati Village Development Committee of the district, eKantipur quoted Hari Dahal, spokesperson at the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives as saying.

Nepal had managed to remain safe by the avian virus even after it was traced in neighboring villages of India.

After the first outbreak of the disease in the country on Jan. 16, the government had declared emergency in the area that lied within a radius of 10 km from the quarantine office in Kakarbhitta of Jhapa district.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives is set to organize a press conference to give further information about the second outbreak.

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