Transportation hit in Navapur due to bird flu

     Navapur/Pune: Commuters are finding it difficult in Maharashtra's Navapur town as the train and bus services to the area have been diverted due to the outbreak of bird flu here. The roads to Navapur are blocked and trains passing through the town are not allowed to stop here. Authorities said that this was a temporary and preventive arrangement to control the situation. "This is a temporary phase. We are adopting some preventative measures here. We have restricted the movement of people and vehicles to prevent the disease from spreading further. This is a situation to be afraid of. There is no need to panic," said Dr. Vijay Satbir Singh, Secretary, Health Department, Maharashtra. Passengers, however, are facing a tough time here, as they are not finding any transport for commuting. "I have come from Surat and I want to go back. We are not finding any bus or train here. It is a difficult situation for us," said Vinod, a passenger. The officials of the Health Department of Maharashtra and doctors are monitoring the situation regularly and police teams have been deployed at various check-points in the town.

     Meanwhile, at Wadgaon near Pune, many chickens have died in last three-four days due to shortage of food. Owners of the farms said that if the situation continues to prevail then they would have to close down the business. They fear that the deaths would increase the panic among people about the bird flu. "It is time for us to shut down our business. For the last two days, the birds have nothing to eat. If they do not get food for one more day then they will die. This will lead to more rumours that more birds have died," said Dilip Chavan, a poultry owner. Poultry owners blamed the inadequate transport facility as the cause of deaths of the birds. "There is no transportation facility to bring the feed from Mumbai. The feed now costs rupees 12 to 13 per kilo. Whatever money I had, has already been used to purchase feed. Now, I do not have any money. We do not have any option," added Dilip Chavan, a poultry owner. The owners also claimed that there is no bird flu here. "There is no feed for the last three days and they are dying. The deaths are due to the lack of feed and not because of bird flu. There is no bird flu here," said Dilip Khude, another poultry owner. India is the world's fifth biggest exporter of eggs. The sale of poultry products within the country has also gone down. Countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal have already banned imports of poultry products from India. This has adversely affected the poultry industry and the other related units.

Bird flu-hit town under strict quarantine
by Sameer Desai/Karan Kapoor

    A strict quarantine is continuing in Maharashtra's Navapur town as authorities try to contain a spreading outbreak of bird flu. Culling in Navapur and surrounding areas is over and more than 345,000 birds had been destroyed, officials said, adding a few remaining backyard poultry were being culled after compensating the owners. Panic had gripped the world's second most populous nation after 12 people were suspected for a possible human infection of the H5N1 virus but officials on Thursday said 11 of them have been tested negative for the virus. Health officials said the last sample had to undergo further tests to conclusively decide its status and the result was expected on Saturday. But despite the relief, officials are taking no chances and rail and road traffic to the town has been suspended. "This is a precautionary measure. We have restricted movement of people to some extent, we are simply monitoring the movements it does not mean people should panic or the disease has spread dangerously. There should be no panic. We only want to be sure that even if there is something it does not spread," Vijay Satvir Singh, secretary health western Maharashtra, said. Indian veterinary workers have also begun cleaning up chicken farms and disinfecting homes in the remote town. Sales of poultry products have already fallen 25 to 30 percent in India since the outbreak was reported and hapless farm owners have been appealing for help. In Pune, small-time poultry farmers said dozens of birds have died of starvation as they after the massive losses they had no money left to buy the feed. Farmers said they were concerned the deaths could spark panic and lead to widespread culling further crushing their business. "We have no money left to the run the business. For the past two days the birds are hungry and if they do not get food for a day or two more they will die. If the birds die then there will be alarm and panic and it will not be good for the other farms as it could spark culling," said Dilip Sawant, a poultry owner. In Ludhiana, poultry farmers organised free buffets of chicken dishes to reassure people most poultry was still safe to eat. More than 200 million birds across Asia, parts of the Middle East, Europe and Africa have died of the virus or been culled. The World Health Organisation (WHO) said on Monday that mutations in the H5N1 virus are seemingly making it more deadly in chickens and more resistant in the environment but without yet increasing the threat to humans.

Migratory birds found dead in Aurangabad

    Aurangabad (Maharashtra): More than 250 migratory birds were found dead in a remote village of Maharashtra's Aurangabad district, barely 200 kilometers from Nandurbar, the epicenter of the country's first bird flu breakout. The deaths, which came to light on Wednesday at the Gandhili village of Aurangabad, have added to the panic in the region, though locals claimed the deaths occurred due to poisoning rather than bird flu. Villagers alerted the district authorities who collected samples of the dead birds and sent them for investigations. But today workers were seen carrying away the dead birds with bare hands. "We believe these birds have died due to poisoning and not because of bird flu. The birds have been taken for post mortem examination and the results are awaited," said Dilip Vardi, President of Friends of Birds, a local voluntary organisation working in the area of wildlife. The birds, which have died, are mainly of the green shank and red shank varieties. Indian veterinary workers, meanwhile today, began cleaning up chicken farms and disinfecting homes in Navapur town after culling hundreds of thousands of chickens hit by bird flu. Culling in Navapur and surrounding areas was over and more than 345,000 birds had been destroyed, a few remaining backyard poultry were being culled after compensating the owners. At many farms, workers exhumed chickens that had been buried clumsily by owners in shallow pits. They re-buried them and sprayed disinfectant and lime powder on the graves to prevent infections. Homes of poultry workers were also sprayed with disinfectants. Authorities have virtually cut off traffic through Navapur, restricting movements of trains and road traffic to minimize contact between locals and outsiders. Health officials said fears of human infections were easing as 11 of 12 people quarantined following the outbreak of the virus in poultry had tested negative for the H5N1 strain. The last sample still is undergoing further tests to conclusively decide its status and the result is expected on Saturday. Besides the dozen, two more people were quarantined on Thursday including a veterinary worker involved in culling of chickens in Navapur town.

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