Bangladesh News

Crows in Dinajpur town and its adjacent areas are dying in large numbers while at least 4,700 poultry birds were culled in the district as they were infected with bird flu.

Locals and district livestock officials said over 400 crows died in the last two days in the town and are rotting in the open, our Dinajpur correspondent reports.

Locals of Munshipara and Barabandar said crows were seen falling from trees and die after a short while.

District livestock officials said two dead crows were sent to Joypurhat and Dhaka for lab tests to ascertain the disease that caused their death. He suspected it could be bird flu but could not confirm.

The official advised locals to bury the dead crows.

Our Patuakhali correspondent on Wednesday reported that around 150 crows in Patuakhali town died in last consecutive two days. Locals and district livestock officials said the birds died in Puran Bazar of town. Two dead birds were sent to Barisal and Dhaka on Tuesday to ascertain the cause of death. On Thursday evening lab reports revealed that the crows died of bird flu.

Meanwhile, 4,716 chickens, ducks and pigeons have been culled at farms in and around Rajbari of Dinajpur town after bird flu was detected in the area.

Sources said the culling started Thursday night and went on till yesterday afternoon.

District Livestock Officer AKM Nurzzamal said 2,000 birds were culled in the town’s Rajbari, Katapara and Rajarampur area after bird flu was confirmed at three farms on January 19. Birds in seven other farms were later infected with the virus.

Mentioning that there is no need to panic, he said the authorities concerned have decided to use megaphones to make people aware of the disease. There has also been strong monitoring of the border with India so that no birds are brought into the country as there is a bird flu outbreak in North Shiliguri, North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur and Cochbihar districts of West Bengal in India.

District administration of Patuakhali and Barguna yesterday declared their districts as bird flu affected area.

Patuakhali authorities culled about 3,000 domestic birds in the town Thursday night while over 4,000 domestic birds were culled in Barguna three days ago.

They also declared a three-month ban on trading of such birds in the districts.

Abu Taher, Patuakhali district livestock officer yesterday said at least 2,640 domestic birds were culled with the help of police, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), and army personnel. They also destroyed 1,155 eggs.

The culling took place at farms and houses in Nutan Bazar, Chawk Bazar, Puran Bazar, Katpatti, College Road areas and they were buried near Lawkathi of the Sadar upazila.

In Barguna at least 4,074 domestic birds were culled with the help of police, Rab, and army personnel Wednesday night as bird flu was identified there.

Authorities concerned in both the districts already started awareness programmes including distributing leaflets and using loudspeakers to inform people about the disease.

In a press release Thursday FAO Chief Veterinary Officer Joseph Domenech said, “The H5N1 [a strain of avian influenza] avian influenza crisis is far from over and remains particularly worrying in Indonesia, Bangladesh and Egypt, where the virus has become deeply entrenched despite major control efforts.”

He said countries should continue to keep a close eye on the evolving situation. “The virus has not become more contagious to humans but has managed to persist in parts of Asia, Africa and probably Europe. It could still trigger a human influenza pandemic,” he warned.

He said India is struggling to keep the worst-ever avian influenza outbreak in West Bengal under control. Indonesia remains one of the worst affected countries with 31 out of 33 provinces infected since 2004, many heavily. The continuing number of human cases gives cause for concern.

In Bangladesh, 21 out of 64 districts have been infected with H5N1 and the situation seems to be worsening. The disease appears to be endemic in the country. Surveillance and control campaigns have so far not succeeded in interrupting virus transmission between provinces. FAO is strengthening its presence in Bangladesh to support the government in its efforts to bring the disease under control, the press release said.