Bird flu alert in Uttarakhand; Bihar, Orissa refuse culling

A bird flu alert has been sounded in Uttarakhand following the death of some chickens even as authorities in Bihar and Orissa today "objected" to culling operations in their states saying there was no trace of the deadly virus.

Uttarakhand Health Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank said an alert has been issued following death of some birds in Dehradun. Samples of the dead chicken have been sent to laboratories for tests. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said there was no need for culling operations in the state as no case of bird flu was confirmed, particularly in districts adjoining West Bengal.

The Orissa government also decided to convey to the Centre its opposition to the directive of killing all birds in the radius of five km bordering West Bengal. "We will write to the Centre as killing of healthy birds is inhuman," state Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Service Director BP Sethy said.

Meanwhile, culling of birds has almost been complete in West Bengal. Culling work was now on at Canning in South 24 Parganas and mopping up work, which has begun in most of the affected districts, will continue, state Animal Resources Development Minister Anisur Rehman said.