Bird Flu outbreak across India: Several states on alert

Even as the country is reeling under the coronavirus pandemic, another crisis has started troubling the states. Five states have so far confirmed the outbreak of avian influenza or bird flu. Authorities in Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan said hundreds of birds have died in recent days due to bird flu.

On December 5, Himachal Pradesh became the fifth state in India to have confirmed bird flu cases in the last one week. This comes after the same virus was detected in Rajasthan, Kerala, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh.

Situation In Himachal Pradesh

Around 1,800 migratory birds died at the Pong Dam lake in the state in one week and now officials have confirmed that it was because of the H1N1 avian influenza virus.

Haryana orders probe

Meanwhile, in Haryana, almost one lakh poultry birds died in Barwala in the last few days. The deaths occurred in at least 20 poultry farms in Barwala. The Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department had launched a probe into the death of lakhs of poultry birds.

40,000 birds to be culled in Kerala

Kerala plans to cull around 40,000 birds as a strain of the influenza virus H1N8 was detected in the state. The state government said that bird flu is declared as a state-specific disaster in Kerala and a high alert has been issued after an outbreak of bird flu.

Situation in Rajasthan & other states

A bird flu alert has been sounded in Rajasthan, where over 250 crows were found dead in half a dozen districts. Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, both neighbouring Kerala, put their animal husbandry and forest departments on alert. Meanwhile, a bird flu alert has also been issued in Madhya Pradesh in the wake of sudden death of crows. As many as 376 crows have been reported from parts of western Madhya Pradesh, including 142 in Indore, 100 in Mandsaur, 112 in Agar-Malwa, 13 in Khargone and 9 in Sehore.

Alert sounded in country

Amid the scare, the Centre has also issued a bird flu alert in several states in the wake of the sudden death of birds in large numbers, saying that the samples need to be collected from areas where bird flu cases are being reported.

Does it spread easily to humans?

While the H5N1 is the most common form of the virus, it does not easily spread from human to human. Some early symptoms of bird flu include diarrhoea, sickness and chest pain.