Sri Lankan health authorities have assured that the death of a large number of fowls earlier at a chicken farm in Bingiriya in the North Western Province is not due to bird flu and there is no cause for concern.

Director General of the Department of Animal Products and Health Dr. Kumara de Silva at a media briefing yesterday said the infection of the chickens in the particular farm was not due to the deadly H5N1 strain.

"This is not H5N1 infection. If it was H5N1, all the fowls would have died within three days," Dr. de Silva said.

Sri Lanka's Ministry of Health has issued a warning that there may be a threat of avian (bird) flu after a large number of fowl had died of an apparent infection at a farm in Bingiriya, Kurunegala in the North Western Province.

The Ministry has alerted that one of the dead birds had the symptoms of avian flu.

The Additional Director General of the Department of Animal Production and Health Dr. A.D.N.Chandrasiri has confirmed that the fowl deaths were due to Avian Influenza caused by a strain less lethal than the potentially deadly H5N1 strain, News First reported.

BERHAMPUR: Death of poultry in Raikia block has spread bird flu panic among the residents. The deaths were reported from two SHGs. Sources said a SHG in Gamandi village had procured 600 chicks with financial assistance from a bank on the advice of local veterinary office, on January 6. However, the members found 10 chicks dead the following day. And so far, 180 have perished. Another SHG at Barepanga village too saw death of 50 chicks.

BARIPADA: Mass culling of birds continued in Betanati block of Mayurbhanj district on Saturday following a Central directive to prevent the spread of avian influenza that was detected in Bahanada village. Official sources said as many as 8,800 birds had been culled and 1,189 eggs destroyed in 32 villages under this block in the last four days. A Central team consisting of two medical officers and an official from the State visited the affected area to supervise the culling.

SHILLONG, Jan 22 – Culling of birds in Williamnagar town of East Garo Hills district and in 35 villages within a 10-km radius of the town has been completed, official sources said today. Culling of birds had started after the Bhopal-based High Security Animal Disease Laboratory (HSADL) confirmed H1N1 virus in blood samples of fowls collected from a government-run poultry farm in the district on January 11.

BHUBANESWAR: With bird flu scare gripping several parts of the State, the Nandankanan Zoo on Tuesday went into a precautionary mode sanitising the sprawling facility and effecting preventive measures. The zoo authorities rid the entire premises of stray dogs. All poultry birds, including chicken, on the zoo premises were eliminated too.

BHUBANESWAR: The Government on Tuesday sent 10 more samples from Betanati in Mayurbhanj to the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory (HSADL), Bhopal, for testing even as the region has been declared a restricted zone awaiting Central advisory for culling. A high alert has been issued by the Fisheries and Animal Resources Department (FARD) following confirmation of H5N1 virus in a poultry bird on Monday.

More than 4600 fowls from 25 villages of East Garo Hills district in Meghalaya were culled to contain the spread of bird-flu, officials here said on Wednesday.
“We expect to cross the 5000 mark today when culling operation is left in only two villages within 3 km from the epi-centre,” state’s veterinary director Mr L Lyngwa said.

He was optimistic that culling operation will be over by the evening. Yesterday, 1222 fowls in four villages were culled following strict guidelines from the Centre, Mr Lyngwa said.

DHENKANAL: The bird flu panic has made its way to the mid-day meal scheme too. Hundreds of students of various primary schools in Dhenkanal district have refused to take eggs in their noon meal. As many as 1,700 schools with 1.10 lakh children come under the Sarva Sikshya Abhiyan in eight blocks of the district. Since a week, teachers have stopped giving eggs under the MDM following the students’ and their parents’ fear of contracting the flu. The block resource coordinators (BRCs) too have asked the schools to stop distribution of eggs.

Shillong, Jan. 16: The East Garo Hills district administration will continue culling for another week even after more than 2,500 chickens were slaughtered.
More villagers have come forward to report the disease in the control rooms set up in East Garo Hills after an increase in the compensation for the loss of chickens and other poultry products was declared. East Garo Hills deputy commissioner Pravin Bakshi today said culling had been carried out within a 3km radius of Williamnagar, where the first few cases of bird flu were reported.