By IANS
Guwahati : Following the outbreak of the deadly avian influenza in neighbouring West Bengal, authorities in Assam have sounded a bird flu alert in the state and imposed a ban on poultry imports from the neighbourhood, officials said Thursday.
“We have pressed our Rapid Response Teams into service in all the districts and have asked district magistrates to look for signs of any bird flu outbreak anywhere,” R.K. Sarmah, a senior official of the state veterinary and animal husbandry department, said.
Officials in the districts of Goalpara, Dhubri, Kokrajhar and Bongaigaon that shares borders with West Bengal have particularly been directed to keep strict vigil.
“Preliminary investigations have begun but no case of bird flu has been reported so far from anywhere in the State,” Sarmah said.
The deadly avian influenza broke out in two districts of West Bengal, Birbhum and South Dinajpur, which forced authorities to cull more than 10,000 birds in the last two days.
According to authorities, an estimated 7,000 kg of poultry is imported into the northeast through Assam every day, the major chunk being consumed in Assam itself.
“The bulk of poultry which we import is from West Bengal and we do not want to take chances,” said Rajib Sarmah, a spokesman of the All Assam Poultry Association.
The Association has urged state authorities to enforce the ban on poultry import from West Bengal to prevent the situation from going out of hand.
The bird flu alert came a day after Assam ended its national festival Bihu that saw poultry sale at its peak.