Bird Flu Outbreak: Two doctors, six others quarantined in Ranchi

In Ranchi, amid an outbreak of bird flu, two doctors and six staff members from the Regional Poultry Farm in Hotwar have been placed in quarantine at the JSIA building in Ranchi, officials have stated.

The JSIA government building has been repurposed into a bird flu ward, with a team of medical experts from Ranchi collecting samples from the infected individuals.

Following the confirmation of the bird flu outbreak, the Ministry of Animal Husbandry has implemented a series of measures, including a complete ban on the sale and purchase of all birds, as well as conducting surveys around the epicentre.

Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Rahul Kumar Sinha stated, “Bird Flu has been confirmed in Ranchi. As soon as bird flu was confirmed, a series of actions take place under the guidelines mentioned in the Ministry of Animal Husbandry. The first action is a total ban on the sale and purchase of all birds in one kilometre radius of the epicentre.”

Furthermore, he added, “A survey of all the birds is also conducted in the region. A machinery of the district has also been deployed for the containment of the bird flu. The District Animal Husbandry Office, Municipal Corporation, Police and Magistrate have formed a rapid response team.”

In addition to advisories issued in newspapers, the administration will ensure the application of all kinds of precautionary measures in the region for the containment of Bird Flu,” Sinha said.

The Animal Husbandry Directorate, Ranchi, has formed a Rapid Response Team (RRT) for the culling of poultry and cleaning and disinfection of infected areas after H5N1 Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) was detected in the poultry area, Hotwa. The RRT team will work to disinfect the area within one kilometre of the epicentre in the poultry area, Hotwa.

Dr. Santosh Kumar, a meat technologist at the Regional Poultry Farm, stated, “In the one km radius, all chickens and eggs will be disposed of. We will tell all farmers and shopkeepers not to bring any outside poultry. Until we do not receive a negative report, we will ask them not to farm chicken.”

On the orders of the District Collector, about 1745 chickens, 450 ducks and 1697 eggs have been disposed off.

H5N1 stands for Highly Pathogenic Asian Avian Influenza (H5N1) Virus. Avian influenza is a strain of the influenza virus that primarily infects birds, but can also infect humans. This type of flu is most often contracted by contact with sick birds. It can also be passed from person to person. Almost all cases of H5N1 infection in people have been associated with close contact with infected live or dead birds or H5N1-contaminated environments.