The UT administration has intensified surveillance in Sukhna’s wetland area after four more birds were found dead in the lake on Wednesday amid the bird flu scare.
“A pigeon, a crow, an egret and a cormorant were found dead in the lake waters. Samples of the dead birds have been sent for testing to ascertain the cause of death,” said chief conservator of forests Debendra Dalai.
On Tuesday, the carcass of a common coot was also found in the lake. Results of its sample are still awaited.
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‘No reason to panic at this moment’
On the closing of the Sukhna wildlife sanctuary, Dalai said, “There is no need to close the sanctuary or other areas for public as yet. There is no reason to panic at this moment.”
“All bird watchers and volunteers at Sukhna Lake and other water bodies have been kept on high alert to note any unnatural symptoms in birds, such as diarrhoea, head tilt, paralysis and sluggish behaviour,” he added.
Meanwhile, the animal husbandry and fisheries department has been taking samples from poultry farms over the past couple of days.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, the animal husbandry and fisheries department has been taking samples from poultry farms over the past couple of days.
{{/usCountry}}“We have collected more than 200 samples from poultry farms, live markets, water, etc. These have been sent for testing,” said SS Gill, secretary, animal husbandry and fisheries, UT. The results are expected in four to five days.
On imposing ban on poultry products coming from Barwala region of Panchkula, Gill said, “We have not received any official confirmation of the status of avian influenza in that area. We will take a call as the situation develops. In Chandigarh, there is no cause of concern and there is no ban on poultry products.”
Only egg sales impacted
Ashish Kumar, president, Meat Market, Sector 21, said, “There is a fall of around 15% in the demand for eggs, the only product sourced from the Barwala belt. There is no major impact on the prices of other poultry products.”