International – Avian flu update report

Pakistanis find H5N1 bird flu on another farm

The H5N1 bird flu virus has been confirmed at another Pakistani poultry farm, an Agriculture Ministry official said on Sunday.

Authorities confirmed outbreaks of the H5N1 virus at two poultry farms in the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) in February.

The new outbreak was discovered on a farm near the capital, Islamabad.

"It was a small farm and we have already destroyed a total 3,500 chickens there," Mohammad Afzal, the ministry's livestock commissioner, told Reuters.

Pakistan has had no human cases of the disease.

The virus has spread across Asia, into parts of the Middle East, Africa and Europe since 2003.

Scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form that jumps easily between people and starts a global flu pandemic. While only 194 people are known to have been infected so far worldwide, about 109 have died.

However, scientists say millions of people could be infected in a human pandemic but with a much lower mortality rate.

Afzal said workers at the farm where the new outbreak was detected would be tested.

"We have informed the National Institute of Health about the strain and now they will carry out tests of the workers at the farm," he said.

All poultry on farms within five km (three miles) of the outbreak would be strictly monitored, he said.

The H5N1 virus has been found in Pakistan's neighbours including Afghanistan, India and Iran.

300,000 birds culled in Gaza, bird flu under control

Palestinian health workers have contained an outbreak of bird flu in the Gaza Strip after culling more than 360,000 birds exposed to the illness, Gaza Governor Mohammed al-Kidwa said today.

The flu was detected in Gaza near the border with Israel on March 22 and later spread to five farming locations.

UN officials have warned that the virus will deal a severe blow to Gaza's already shaky economy. Poultry is a primary source of protein for Palestinians living there, and the livelihoods of thousands of farmers depend on the birds.

Bird flu was discovered in Israel days before it spread to Gaza. Hundreds of thousands of birds have been killed in Israel.

There have been no confirmed outbreaks in the West Bank.

Israeli and Palestinian officials have cooperated to contain the outbreaks of the flu, with Israeli health authorities running diagnostic tests on birds from Gaza and providing Gaza with the anti-viral vaccine for humans and with poison for culling exposed birds.

The bird flu virus has killed or forced the slaughter of tens of millions of chickens and ducks across Asia since 2003, and recently spread to Europe, Africa and Middle East.

World health officials fear the virus could evolve into a strain that would easily be transmitted between people, potentially triggering a global pandemic, though there is no evidence that is happening.

About 100 people have died from the disease worldwide, most after having been directly infected by sick birds.

Centre announces relief measures for Indian poultry industry

The Centre today announced relief measures for the poultry industry in the country including an initial moratorium on repayment of loans up to one year.

Under the relief measures announced, the principal and interest due on working capital loans and the instalments and interest on term loans, which have fallen due for payment can be converted into term loans, Arvind Kaushal, Joint Secretary of Union Animal Husbandry department said at a seminar here.

"The remaining portion of term loans can be rescheduled with a moratorium period upto one year. The rescheduled or converted loans can be treated as current dues and the borrower will be eligible for fresh need-based finance," he said.

Kumar said in view of heavy losses to the poultry industry, the banks have been asked to extend financial measures.

"A contingency plan is also ready to tackle any problems in future," he said.

The plan includes surveilance sampling and stamping out in case of outbreak in future, Kumar said.

He said there has been a demand for supply of excess food grains at subsidy to the poultry industry.

He said other demand from the industry is to create poultry zones so that affected areas can be quarantined whereas those not effected exports can be continued.

"But this is a long drawn process as the Government has to prepare a dossier and go to the International body Office International des Epizooties (OIE) to state there is no bird flu in the particular areas," he said.