Ghazipur’s poultry hub shut amid bird flu scare

The government’s move came at a time when at least 64 birds were found dead in various locations across the national capital over the past few days.

The Delhi government on Saturday announced the closure of the Ghazipur wholesale poultry market for 10 days and banned the import of live birds in the Capital as a preventive measure to stop the potential spread of avian influenza, or bird flu, after more bird deaths were reported, prompting the shutdown of a few recreational parks and the Sanjay Lake.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a digital news briefing that while no confirmed case had so far been registered in Delhi, the government was taking all possible measures to prevent the spread of bird flu.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said in a digital news briefing that while no confirmed case had so far been registered in Delhi, the government was taking all possible measures to prevent the spread of bird flu.

The government’s move came at a time when at least 64 birds were found dead in various locations across the national capital over the past few days. The deaths led the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), which maintains most of the big parks in the city, to shut at least four major district parks in Hauz Khaz, Dwarka Sector 9, Hastsal and Sanjay Lake as a precautionary measure until further orders.

While experts supported the decision as a preventive measure, traders at the Ghazipur market and poultry retailers said it would impact the availability of chicken and eggs in the market. According to the government’s animal husbandry department, at least 250,000 live birds (chicken) arrive in Delhi every day and almost all of them are sold out in retail the same day. On Sundays, theses arrivals and sales nearly double.

Kejriwal said that the results of the first set of samples collected from Delhi sent to the Northern Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Jalandhar for testing and the reports will come on Monday. “In view of the prevailing situation and to prevent the virus from spreading in the city, the Delhi government has taken two very important decisions today. Firstly, we have put a complete ban on imports of live birds in the city. Secondly, the Ghazipur wholesale poultry market has been ordered shut for 10 days,” he said.

The government has also launched a 24-hour helpline number – 23890318 – for people to report any spotting of dead birds or seek assistance.

Seven states – Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Kerala, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh – have reported the outbreak, which began in December-end. No case among the human population has been reported.

A senior DDA official said that at the Sanjay Lake in east Delhi’s Mayur Vihar Phase II, 10 ducks were found dead. “The samples have been sent to ascertain the cause of death. Besides, 24 crows died in the last four days at the district park in Jasola. DDA is monitoring the situation closely and is in touch with other government agencies. Meanwhile, precautionary measures like spraying of disinfectant are being carried out in the DDA parks,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

While four major parks mentioned above have been shut Saturday onwards, the district park in Jasola was not immediately shut.

“We are monitoring the situation. We have closed Hauz Khas parks as a lot of people visit it, especially during the weekend,” said the DDA official.

On Friday, the government’s animal husbandry department found nearly 50 carcasses of crows in east Delhi’s Mayur Vihar, Dwarka and Hastsal in west Delhi.

Dr Rakesh Singh of the animal husbandry department said that until Friday, a total of 104 samples were sent from Delhi to Jalandhar. Five more samples were sent to the National Institute of High Security Animal Disease, ICAR, Bhopal on Saturday.

“Of the 104 samples that have been sent already, 100 are faecal and blood samples and four are dead crows,” he said. He said the first set of results will come in by Monday.

Traders in Ghazipur, meanwhile, appealed to the chief minister to conduct sample tests at poultry farms in other states from where live birds arrive in Delhi.

At least 1,200 birds were found dead across the country on Saturday, including 900 in a poultry farm in Maharashtra, with the Centre saying that the outbreak of avian influenza has been reported in Uttar Pradesh, taking the total number of affected states to seven.

The Centre said the reports of samples collected in Delhi, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra were awaited.