Flu effect: Poultry units get interest cut on loans

Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today announced that the government has decided to grant a one-time reduction of four percentage points in the interest payment liability on bank loans taken by poultry units.

The move is aimed at increasing demand for poultry products following the outbreak of avian flu in the country. The reduction will apply to accounts of all poultry units with all banks including commercial banks, cooperative banks and regional rural banks (RRBs).

"The amount required for this purpose will be released to the banks for crediting to all such accounts very soon," said Pawar after a meeting with representatives of the industry here.

Meanwhile, an apex poultry industry body has said the domestic poultry industry had registered a loss of Rs 7,000 crore due to the panic reaction arising out of the localised bird flu outbreak.

"The estimated loss to poultry and allied industries stands at Rs 200 crore per day," Vice-President of Poultry Federation of India A P Sachdev said.

The cumulative loss stood at Rs 7,000 crore for the last 35 days since the bird flu outbreak, he added.

This estimate includes loss to broiler, layer, egg, feed, breed, pharma segments and also loss of transport and other dependent industries, Sachdev said.

"The industry loss was due to drop in sales due to panic reaction to the localised outbreak at navapur in maharashtra," sachdev said.

President of pfi in north zone, shabbir a khan said price of chicken in wholesale market has come down drastically affecting the small poultry farmers.

Chicken priced at rs 32 per kg in wholesale market before the outbreak is now selling at rs one in pune, rs five in mumbai and hyderabad, rs 10 in delhi and rs 14 in coimbatore.

"This drop in price is due to wrong perception about bird flu," he said adding "it is safe to eat well-cooked poultry products including chicken and egg".

To remove doubts from the minds of consumer, khan quoted the us-based centre for disease control and prevention (cdc) study that said: "there is no evidence that any human case of avian influenza has been acquired by eating poultry products".