Bird flu fear in Jharkhand's Bokaro, 700 chickens goes missing

The 700 chickens and ducks that have been marked by the animal husbandry department for culling due to bird flu infection pose a major health risk. By Monday, the team had culled 850 birds in the affected zone within 1 km of the confirmed cases. 

Large numbers of potentially infected birds were either sold, consumed or relocated to avoid culling, the sources said. More than 953 chickens have been culled since the bird flu outbreak was confirmed at a government poultry farm in Lohanchal in Sector 12.

“Around 3,800 chickens and ducks have been identified for culling in the affected areas within a radius of 1 km from the government farm. From Saturday our team started spending. We visited Bagrabeda, Hanuman Nagar, Ukrid and Satanpur area but found only about 850 chickens. Residents removed or consumed them fearing culling,” said Manoj Kumar Mani, district animal husbandry officer.

"People don't understand the sensitivity of the situation. Culling is a must to limit the spread of the virus,” he said. The team will advance to several areas, including Ritudih, Birsa Basa and Sonataad, again on Monday night, he revealed. Meanwhile, a report from the laboratory is awaited in connection with the death of about 78 chickens at a private poultry farm in Gaychanda under Kasmar block. Samples from two dozen poultry farms under Chase and other blocks are also yet to arrive.

Although Bokaro is becoming the epicenter in Jharkhand, there is a bird flu scare, roadside vendors, restaurants, hotels and mess are serving chicken as it is still in demand. The owner of the restaurant said that even though sales of chicken products have dropped, their sales have not stopped.