TIRUPATI: Chittoor district Animal Husbandry officials carried out the mass culling of nearly 3,000 birds in a single day as part of preventive measures, while a high alert continues across the Rayalaseema region, especially in Chittoor, Annamayya and Tirupati districts, where poultry activity is extensive.
High-level district medical teams and Animal Husbandry Department staff have been deployed in the field to control the situation and prevent public panic.
Meanwhile, officials are awaiting the test results of blood and saliva samples collected from dead poultry at RKM Puram in Karvetinagar mandal, which were sent to the Bhopal High-Security Laboratory for analysis.
District authorities suspect that the root cause of the spread of avian influenza in poultry farms in Chittoor and Annamayya districts may be migratory crows that entered border areas from Tamil Nadu. It may be noted that thousands of crows have reportedly died in several parts of Tamil Nadu in recent days due to a viral infection. Officials believe the virus may have spread to poultry through crow droppings, faeces and saliva, leading to infection among chickens.
Geographically, the suspected flu-affected poultry units in Karvetinagar are located barely 15 km from the Tamil Nadu border. Speaking to TNIE, Collector Sumit Kumar said there was no need for public to panic, as the situation is being closely monitored by the Animal Husbandry Department and district medical teams. He said isolation measures have been implemented in affected poultry areas and added that monitoring has also been extended to nearby residential villages.