11-12-2008 13:51:03 IST
The deadly H5N1 avian influenza virus which causes bird flu is spreading to new areas of Assam. Official report says that in the past two weeks over 200,000 poultry have been culled in various affected areas of the state but the disease is griping up new areas, every day. Interacting with the media, Parthajyoti Gogoi, a central health ministry official said that maximum health alert has been sounded in the state following the unstoppable spread of bird flu virus.
According to Gogoi, teams of doctors and paramedics in the state are taking precautionary measures so that humans do not get affected by bird flu virus. Reports confirm that bird flu has engulfed a total of six districts of Assam. A state veterinary official revealed that about 150,000 more poultry would be culled in coming days. The districts of Kamrup (Metro), Kamrup (Rural), Dibrugarh, Nalbari, Barpeta and Chirang were hit by bird flu. Culling is being carried out in about 200 villages in the six districts.
After the outbreak of bird flu in Assam, the state authorities have imposed a ban on sale of poultry and poultry products in most parts of the state. Apart from it, bird flu menace has injected a sense of fear in the minds of the people of Assam. Informing about the culling of poultry, the state veterinary official said that about 100 rapid response teams have been given the responsibility to flush out the affected poultry of the region.
The outbreak of bird flu was declared after laboratory tests found strains of the deadly H5N1 avian influenza. The World Health Organization fears that the H5N1 strain could mutate into a form easily transmitted between humans and spark a pandemic. The state authority has instructed veterinary and animal husbandry department to maintain strict surveillance on farms, with veterinarians carrying out checks on all poultry.
hat-tip Niman
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