Bhubaneswar: Even as bird flu reportedly spread to new areas in Odisha’s Puri, outbreak of avian influenza was suspected to have surfaced in Kendrapada district of the state amid death of several birds.
Sources said bird flu menace gripped Delang area in Puri after several areas in Pipili block were affected by the disease. Culling operation was reported to have been launched in the area after samples collected from a chicken farm at Motari panchayat in Delang was tested positive for H5N1 bird flu.
Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) were stated to have culled as many as 3200 birds so far. Culling operation is likely to be carried out in around 74 chicken farms in five gram panchayats located within one km periphery for which 10 RRTs have been formed.
With Pipili and Delanga blocks of Puri emerging as hotspots for bird flu, the district administration has mounted a strong vigil and surveillance on the chicken farms.
This apart, culling of birds was also undertaken in a farm at Balipada panchayat under Nimapara block in the district. To begin with, over 2,000 chickens have been culled so far, while plans are afoot to cull around 10,000 birds in the peripheral area of the farm tomorrow.
Meanwhile, bird flu outbreak was suspected to have taken place in Kendrapada district after dead chickens packed in sacks were found on the road at Baikia village under Derabis area.
However, the circumstances in which the dead chickens were thrown on the road were yet to be ascertained. Locals are quite apprehensive as bird flu has affected several areas of Puri district. They have also drawn the attention of the local authorities to the matter for appropriate precautionary measures.
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