KENDRAPARA: Around 1,500 chickens in some poultry farms of Derabish block have died in the last three days, fuelling fears of bird flu in the region.
Chief district veterinary officer (CDVO) of Kendrapara Manoj Patnaik said several chickens died unnaturally between Tuesday and Thursday in poultry farms at Golarahat, Dumuka and nearby villages. The dead chickens were later buried.
The two km radius of the area where the chickens died is under surveillance. Officials have also taken precautionary steps to detect sick poultry birds. People of the affected areas have been instructed not to handle the dead chickens without gloves. They were instructed to bury the dead birds by digging deep holes, he said.
Patnaik further said there was no reason to panic as the Veterinary department has not detected any H5N1-affected poultry bird in the area. To protect the chickens from Ranikhet disease and bird flu, a large number of poultry birds have been vaccinated. Farmers rearing poultry birds have also been asked to use this opportunity and approach the nearest veterinary dispensaries to get the chickens vaccinated to prevent the viral disease.
“We have already collected samples of blood, stool, tracheal and cloacal of some birds and dead chickens from the poultry farms. The samples have been sent to the Animal Disease Research Institute (ADRI), Cuttack. Several poultry farm owners have been trained to detect sick birds. Poultry farmers have also been advised to take bio-security measures like using aerial disinfectant sprays and administering mandatory vaccines to the birds periodically,” said Patnaik.
Nine rapid response teams (RRTs) have been formed in all the blocks of the district. At least 27 veterinary assistant surgeons, livestock inspectors, zilla parishad members and social workers are members of each RRT, he added.