September 13, 2024

West Bengal, India, slaps ban on poultry products from Odisha over bird flu outbreak

The government of West Bengal, India, has imposed an immediate ban on import of poultry products from Odisha following the outbreak of bird flu in the Puri district.

Sources said the ban, which came into effect a couple of days back, has led to restrictions on the transportation of live poultry birds, eggs, and other products.

"Joint teams of police and Animal Husbandry department of WB government are preventing entry of poultry birds and eggs from Odisha at the border posts," sources said. "Though they allowed consignments carrying birds from Andhra Pradesh, vehicles with Odisha registration number were sent back."

The decision has sparked concern among traders and farmers who are facing substantial financial losses. Odisha supplies around 100 tonne poultry birds to WB daily.

The state government, however, assured it was taking necessary measures to control the situation and mitigate the impact on local farmers and traders.

Additional director of animal disease control Dr. Jagannath Nanda said poultry integrators have been asked to remind farmers to inform local officials whenever they suspect any case of bird flu and must sanitise their farms.

"Our focus is to prevent the spread of bird flu to other areas," said Dr. Nanda. "So far, the avian influenza is restricted to Puri only. The samples from Kendrapara have been sent to the regional laboratory at Kolkata for testing. The report is expected within a day of two."

- The New Indian Express