Months after Kerala declared bird flu as a state disaster, the virus has been reported in the state again. Around 300 poultry birds reportedly died at a poultry farm at Koorachundu in Kozhikode district on Tuesday, July 20. According to a report in The Hindu, samples were sent to the Regional Laboratory in Thiruvananthapuram, which confirmed the bird flu. It was decided to immediately close down all poultry farms in a 10 square kilometer radius of the farm from which bird flu was reported.
Officials also sent samples to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal for further testing, the results of which are awaited. Officials, however, have said there is no reason to panic, as necessary precautionary measures have been taken and the situation is purportedly under control. However, it remains unclear as to whether the strain of the virus is the same as the outbreak earlier this year. The recent cases have not been declared as an outbreak.
Recently, India reported its first death due to the bird flu. An 11-year-old boy from Haryana was found to be infected with the H5N1 strain of the virus. Though he was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi on July 2, he succumbed on Tuesday, July 20.
In January this year, Kerala, along with other states in India, reported an outbreak of avian influenza. Over 69,000 poultry birds, including ducks and hens, were culled in Kerala as a result of this. The outbreak was reported in Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in the Kuttanad region, where duck rearing is popular. Poultry meat was banned in the state during the outbreak, and state as well as Union government officials were monitoring the situation. However, the virus was not transmitted to any humans.
(With IANS inputs)