No confirmed case of bird flu in humans
by Ruchi Gupta

     New Delhi: The Central Government said on Thursday that there was no confirmed case of humans affected by bird flu so far, adding that of the 95 human samples tested for the avian influenza virus, 94 were found to be negative. Confirmatory tests are being carried on the one remaining sample, it said in a statement. Categorically denying any human case of bird flu till 1130 a.m. on Thursday, a statement issued by the Union Health Ministry said that all the patients isolated at Navapur Sub District Hospital in Maharashtra are normal and clinically clear. Of the 95 samples being tested at the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, Delhi and National Institute of Virology Pune, 90 tested negative on Tuesday while four tested negative today.

     Health workers killed thousands of birds across the country on Wednesday, as authorities said the first laboratory reports on whether the bird flu virus had infected people was delayed. The results from 12 people -- including six children -- quarantined either with flu-like symptom or as a precaution was expected late on Wednesday, but Union Health Minister Ambumani Ramadoss said they would be available by Thursday. "We have tested a number of samples about ninety five of samples we have tested, from the people who have been associated with poultry. Out of the ninety-five, ninety have tested negative and for the rest five samples we will get a confirmatory by tomorrow afternoon or evening. But all the ninety-five patients or people are doing well. There is absolutely no symptoms of anybody having any problem related to bird flu or any thing and they have been isolated, they are being monitored and in fact as a precaution they are being given Tamuflu, so there is no problem what so ever," Ramdoss told reporters. Alarm is growing at the sudden resurgence of the H5N1 virus as it spreads rapidly across Europe, into Africa and now India, where hundreds of millions of people live in rural areas side-by-side with livestock and domestic fowl. Blood samples from 185 people, including those quarantined, are being tested at a lab in the western Indian city of Pune.

     In Maharashtra's Navapur, where the virus was discovered on Saturday, health workers wearing anti-viral masks and goggles have so far killed about 400,000 birds, burying some. Civic workers in Navapur had been instructed by officials not to shed the blood of any bird. The biggest fear is that if bird flu breaks out in this nation of more than 1 billion people with poor to non-existent health services, it could rapidly spread. Adding to concerns are reports of more sudden deaths of poultry elsewhere in the country. In Navapur and nearby villages, health workers went around on motor-rickshaws making announcements about bird flu to the people, most of whom remained ignorant about the disease. Most villagers say they are happy to have ready customers, who paid the standard 40 Indian rupees (90 cents) for a grown chicken and 10 rupees for a chick. Eggs went free. In Gujarat state to the north of Maharashtra, police banned the transport of chickens and eggs.

     Meanwhile, the father of a dead poultry worker said on Wednesday that his son had died of bird flu. "He died because of bird flu. He was suffering from the same symptoms of that bird flu like... He was admitted in Surat hospital where he was kept for seven days," Ramesh Bhai Sonar said in Navapur. The health ministry, after verifying clinical reports, had earlier clarified that the man died of bacterial infection, not of bird flu. Reports of thousands of poultry deaths poured in from pockets across the country, the latest from the southern state of Karnataka, where 16,000 dead chickens were found. Dead poultry have also been reported in Gujarat, northern Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal states. Authorities say monitoring and regulating backyard poultry is tough.

     A total of 1,95,124 infected chickens were culled and 3.60 lakhs eggs and 36 metric tonnes of chicken feed has been destroyed so far, Director General Information and Public Relations of Maharashtra government, Bhushan Gagrani said in Mumbai. After getting the required guidelines from the Central health authorities, the work of disposal of waste and litter will begin from today, said Additional Commissioner, Animal Husbandry, S M Ali in Navapur yesterday. The Maharashtra Government also gave compensation to poultry farm owners in the affected areas. Maharashtra Animal Husbandry Minister Anees Ahmed had earlier said that after the culling operation is completed, the account books of the retailers will be scrutinised to have an idea about the losses suffered by the poultry owners and the retailers and also announced to give them compensation.

Intervet denies report

     Authorities in Indore on Thursday discovered carcasses of about six hundred chickens in a pond, sending alarm bells across the region. The birds, which were tied up in gunny bags were recovered from a pond in the city, which authorities said, were dumped by neighbourhood poultry. R.S.Jimal, Joint Secretary, of the department of Veterinary said samples have been sent to test for the dreaded H5N1 virus. Meanwhile, Pune-based international pharma company Intervet, refuted reports that the vaccine provided by the company to the federal health authorities were responsible for the bird flu in India. "That's baseless because our vaccine first of all is a killed vaccine. Secondly our vaccine meets the highest standards. Our production meets the standards set by WHO-GMP and they also have to meet the requirements of the European Union," said Lino Componovo, managing director of Intervet. Intervet had supplied 1.5 million doses to the Indian government after the former placed an order in November last year. Intervet is the third largest animal health company in the world. On the other hand, poultry organisations in southern Hyderabad city organised an awareness campaign to allay the fears of bird flu. Legislators and senior officials from the state attended the campaign where specially cooked chicken dishes hogged the limelight.

Back to Headlines                  Go To Top