By IANS
Kolkata : The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu was spreading further in West Bengal, outpacing culling operations, a minister confirmed Sunday.
The southern district of Bankura was the latest addition to the list of affected areas, taking to six the total number of districts in the grip of the deadly virus.
“Bird flu in Saltora block of Bankura district has been confirmed by the HSADL (High Security Animal Disease Laboratory), Bhopal, while we have confirmation of the strain from new areas of the existing districts,” West Bengal Animal Resource Development Minister Anisur Rahman told IANS.
“Nanoor in worst-hit Birbhum district and three more blocks – Suti I, Sagardighi and Beldanga I – are added to the list,” he said.
“We are increasing the number of Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) to 400 from the existing 200 to keep pace with the spread of bird flu,” Rahman said.
“The culling was affected Sunday because of Muharram, but we hope to cope up with the challenge,” he said.
While the minister could not spell out the exact number of poultry birds culled, he said around 130,000 chicken and ducks were culled since Wednesday when the operation began.
The state set a target of slaughtering 400,000 poultry but with the spread of the disease to new areas at least 300,000 more birds will have to be killed.
The six affected districts are Birbhum, South Dinajpur, Murshidabad, Nadia, Burdwan and Bankura.
The minister said the culling was almost complete in Balurghat in South Dinajpur, about 375 km from here.
Reacting to the central government’s criticism of the measures taken in West Bengal, Rahman said that the flu outbreak in Maharashtra in 2006 was in a farm.
“But here you have to deal with poultry birds in backyards. In many places, the villagers consider the poultry as part of their family and do not want to part with them.
“We are doing our best going by the fact that something like this has happened for the first time in the state,” Rahman said.
Union Minister of State for Health Panabaka Lakshmi had said here Saturday: “We are not satisfied (with the measures to combat bird flu).” Although she did not specify where the state was lacking, she alleged that the compensation for poultry owners was not properly distributed.
About 100,000 poultry deaths were reported in West Bengal in the past three weeks.
Meanwhile, the forest department has decided to monitor thousands of migratory birds from Siberia and East Europe that visit the state every winter.
More officials have been posted at Santragachi Lake in Howrah, 10 km from Kolkata, where migratory birds started arriving in October.
The state government has allocated Rs.30 million for compensation to those losing their poultry birds, Rahman said.
Farmers were being handed over tokens at culling sites and asked to contact their panchayat or village block offices for the money. The payment is Rs.40 for a country chicken, Rs.30 for a broiler and Rs.10 for a chick.
While the minister claimed that culling operations had been stepped up, reports from the districts said the process was slow, often due to villagers’ resistance.
But in areas where a large number of poultry birds had died of the infection, the villagers were eager to offer their chickens and ducks for culling.
The H5N1 virus causes a type of influenza in birds that is highly contagious and can be deadly. It does not usually infect people unless they come in close contact with infected birds or contaminated surfaces.