A huge number of ducks were killed and burned in Kottayam district of Kerala after an alert for bird flu (H5N1 influenza) was sounded by the state animal husbandry department.
“Killing and burning of ducks being done. Places like Kallara, Vechoor and Aimanam were affected by bird flu,” said Kottayam District Collector PK Jayasree, as quoted by news agency ANI.
Bird flu scare was reported first in Alappuzha after many ducks and local birds in the district perished last week, forcing authorities to rush samples to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases in Bhopal. “The government has instructed the district collector to take necessary measures,” informed Animal Husbandry Minister J Cinchu Rani in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram.
The district administration had already banned the use and sale of eggs, meat and manure of ducks, chickens, quails and domestic birds in the affected areas. Additionally, the district administration said that rapid response teams will be deployed in areas where the bird flu has been confirmed and preventive medicines will be distributed to the people.
In Alappuzha and neighbouring Kottayam, duck rearing is an important business and there is high demand for eggs and meat of the bird, generally priced higher than poultry. Endowed with many backwaters and water bodies, Kerala is often hit by the avian influenza. Migratory birds from other countries are reported to be the main carriers of the virus.
The district reported the viral outbreak last year as well but it was localised and contained. In 2016, at least 5 lakh chicken and ducks were culled in Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts to control bird flu.