The Rampur district administration has banned the sale and transport of eggs and other poultry products for 21 days after bird flu (Avian Influenza H5 virus) was confirmed at a poultry farm in Sehor village, where over 15,000 chickens have died, officials said on Tuesday.
District magistrate Jogendra Singh convened an emergency meeting on Monday and ordered the closure of all chicken shops, including eateries serving chicken, across the district for three weeks.
He also prohibited the movement of poultry and poultry products within and outside the district until further notice.
Control rooms have been set up at the district and Bilaspur tehsil levels to monitor the situation, the officials said.
Following the death of thousands of birds at poultry farms in Singhore and Sehora villages in Bilaspur, the administration sealed the area in a one-kilometre radius around the affected farm and declared a 10-km area as a surveillance zone.
The Director of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Bareilly, Triveni Dutt, said the presence of the Avian Influenza H5 virus was confirmed in tests conducted on five samples from Rampur at both IVRI and the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal.
The IVRI tested the samples on August 8, with positive results, and sent them to HSADL on August 9 for further confirmation.
HSADL tested the samples on August 10 and confirmed the presence of the virus on August 11, following which advisories were issued. -- PTI
