The district administration swung into action on Thursday following the detection of bird flu at Palathingal within the Parappanangadi municipal limits in the district. An emergency was declared in the region, and sale of chicken or any other birds within 10 kilometres of Palathingal has been banned until further orders.
The culling of poultry and other pet birds within the one- kilometre radius of the place will begin on Saturday. About 4,000 chickens and birds are expected to
be killed in two days as part of measures to prevent the spread of bird flu.
Poultry shops
All poultry shops in the 10-km will be closed. Special squads of police and Motor Vehicles Department officers have been formed to prevent transporting of birds from or into Parappanangadi.
District Collector Jafer Malik said here on Thursday that poultry in the 10-km range should be protected by feeding them and they should never be sold or killed for meat.
Although no restrictions had been imposed on hotels and restaurants in the region on the use of chicken, Mr. Malik requested them to take extreme care while cooking poultry meat. He requested the people to seek
immediate treatment if they found any signs of the disease.
Control rooms
Two control rooms have been opened to address the queries and concerns of the people.
One of them is at the district level and the other at the Veterinary Hospital, Tirurangadi. They will be functioning round
the clock. They can be reached at 91884 65886, 94475 35222.
Ten rapid response teams (RRT) have been formed to deal with the bird flu emergency. There will be seven members in each team. They have been given special training to deal with the situation.
The culling will begin on Saturday and continue through Monday.
The culled birds will be buried at an appropriate place without leaving any chance for the carcasses to come in contact with waterbodies.
Ten passenger vehicles and 10 goods autorickshaws will be arranged for the culling process.
Safe culling kits, including masks and gloves, would be arranged soon, said Mr. Malik.
Health officials would supply prophylactic medicines for the people of Palathingal and surrounding areas. Measures such as vehicle announcement would be used to create awareness among the public.
Isolation ward
An isolation ward had been set up at Government Taluk Hopsital at Tirurangadi for observing those displaying symptoms of the disease.
They would be observed for two weeks.
Mr. Malik said that the cost of the culled birds would be calculated and a report would be given to the government seeking compensation for them.
No need to panic
Tests conducted on the carcasses of crows at Peruvallur, meanwhile, proved to be negative for bird flu. Mr. Jafer said that people need not panic over bird flu, but precautions and care must be taken.
However, he warned that strict action would be taken against those who deliberately refused to cooperate with the district administration in the fight against such epidemics.
Mr. Malik presided over an emergency meeting held here. District Police Chief U. Abdul Kareem, District Medical Officer K. Sakeena, Animal Husbandry Department Additional Director C. Madhu, Deputy Director Ayub, District Animal Husbandry Officer Rani K. Oommen, Dy.SP Jaleel Thottathil, Circle Inspector Vinod, tahsildar M.S. Shaju and several civic and district officials attended the meeting.
