96 more birds found dead in Maha; samples sent for analysis

Maharashtra has reported deaths of96more birds, most of them poultry birds, amid the avianinfluenza scare, the state government said on Monday.

Their samples are being sent to the National Instituteof High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), Bhopal and DiseaseInvestigation Section, Pune, for testing to ascertain thecause of the death of these birds on Sunday, it said.

According to an official statement, 77 of these werepoultry birds.

The government said 15 crows and four otherbirds,including herons and parrots, also died on Sunday.

Samples of poultry birds from Mahape and Ghansoli inThane district, sent earlier for analysis, were found positivefor avian influenza, the statement said.

Maharashtra has recorded deaths of 19,923 birdssinceJanuary 8, the statement said.

The samples are being sent to National Institute ofHigh Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal and DiseaseInvestigation Section, Pune for testing, the government said.

On January 30, the results of the testing of sampleswere received from the NIHSAD, Bhopal and the poultry birdssamples from Thane district at Mahape and Ghansoli were foundpositive for avian influenza, it said.

The government, however, did not specify the number ofsamples received from the Bhopal-based institute.

So far, 72,106 poultrybirds; 44,686 eggs and 63,339kg poultry feed have been destroyed from infected zones in thestate, the government said.

To avoid the spread of infection, carcasses are put ina gunny sack and buried in a ditch lined with a layer of lime.

The government has sanctioned a compensation packageof Rs 1.30 crore for culling of poultry and other birds, anddestroying eggs and poultry feed, and to cover cost of diseasecontrol within 1 km radius of an infected area under the BirdFluDisease Control Programme, the statement said.