Central team visits bird flu-hit areas in Puri dist

Bhubaneswar: Following detection of bird flu (H5N1 avian influenza) among poultry birds, a three-member Central team visited Puri district in Odisha on Wednesday to assess the situation.

The team toured several affected poultry farms, interacted with farm owners, locals and rapid response teams. Abhijit Mitra, a member of the Central team, said while bird flu primarily affects chickens, the possibility of the virus affecting humans cannot be entirely ruled out. "No cases of bird flu in humans have been reported in India so far," Mitra said.

Four epicentres of the outbreak of bird flu were confirmed in Pipili, Satyabadi, Nimapara and Delanga blocks of Puri district during a high-level meeting of Central and State government officials on Monday. Over 35,000 birds have been culled in these four blocks following the outbreak of bird flu.