New Delhi (NVI): In the wake of bird flu outbreak in at least four states across the country, the Central Government has deployed multi-disciplinary teams to Avian Influenza affected Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in Kerala, and Panchkula district in Haryana.
According to a statement released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the Department of Animal Husbandry on January 4 notified detection of Avian Influenza (H5N8) in samples of dead ducks from Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in Kerala.
Similar reports of Avian Influenza have also been received from poultry samples from Panchkula District of Haryana, the Ministry said.
The Health Ministry statement comes after the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying released a statement today on the status of Avian Influenza in the country.
According to the Ministry, the Centre has identified 12 epicenters of the bird flu outbreak in four states — Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala — after confirmation of positive samples of Avian Influenza from ICAR-NIHSAD lab in Bhopal and issued guidelines to contain the disease and prevent its further spread.
Hundreds of birds have been found dead in these states, prompting the Centre to issue alert to states to monitor health of birds in forest areas and near water bodies.
As per the Health Ministry statement, the two multi-disciplinary teams comprising of experts from National Center for Disease Control, National Institute of Virology, PGIMER, Chandigarh, Dr. RML Hospital, New Delhi and Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi have been deployed to the affected districts the Health Ministry January 4 to assist the State Health Departments in implementation the Avian Influenza containment plan.
In addition to this, a high level team comprising Director, NCDC and Joint Secretary & COVID-19 nodal officer, Ministry of Food Processing Industries has been deployed to Kerala today to oversee the implementation of Avian Influenza containment operations and guide State Health Departments in mounting appropriate public health interventions for the same.
This high-level team will also review the COVID-19 situation in the State.
Similar reports of avian influenza have also been reported from Baran, Kota and Jhalawar districts in Rajasthan where crows have been found dead. Similarly, in Madhya Pradesh, crows have succumbed to the virus in Mandsaur, Indore and Malwa districts.
In Himachal Pradesh, hundreds of migratory birds have been found dead in Kangra district. In Kerala, poultry-ducks have been found dead in Kottayam and Allapuzha.
Meanwhile, the Department of Animal Husbandry as per laid down protocol has issued alerts to further intensify surveillance to detect any case in poultry birds.
So far, no human case of Avian Influenza has been reported and the Health Ministry continues to keep a strict watch over the evolving scenario, as per the official statement.
-ARK
