Bird flu in Manipur, only one farm so far, no human cases

As first reported by The Indian Express yesterday, the government had put all systems on alert after the labs had sent their report on samples from 132 chickens that died in a backyard poultry farm in Chingmeirong village in East Imphal district. The reports said that seven of the eight samples tested positive for bird flu.

“The tests confirm the outbreak of bird flu as they indicate that the tested samples contain the H5 strains which are highly pathogenic in nature,” Union Secretary for Dairy and Animal Husbandry Charusheel Sohoni said in the capital today. Sohoni said the disease appeared “very localized” being limited to just one unit in that village.

A health official has already checked 21 persons associated with that particular unit and no human case has been found, said a Union Health Ministry official. Around 11 people have been administered preventive doses of Tamiflu, mostly relatives of the poultry farmer whose chicken died.

A 10-bed isolation ward has been set up at the Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital in Imphal so that human cases, if any, are quarantined there for treatment. The Government said the entire region would be kept under surveillance for the next three months before it can be declared free of bird flu.

Sohoni said it will take some time to confirm if it’s the H5N1 strain which was detected in last year’s outbreak. However, speaking to The Indian Express, A C Mishra, director, NIV said that the H5NI strain had been confirmed.

As part of control and containment, the government has already killed the remaining birds in that farm and has disinfected it. Twenty teams will begin culling of an estimated 1.5 lakh birds tomorrow within a 5-km radius of the location, said Th Dorendra, director of veterinary and animal husbandry in the Manipur government. This operation could last five days, he said.

As per procedure, compensation for the loss of each bird will be paid. The region will then be disinfected and kept under constant surveillance to keep track of any infection to human life.

In addition, the government will carry out an intensive clinical and biological survey of the birds in a 5-10-km radius, said Sohoni. The Centre has already sent 40 health teams that will keep a watch on the 4.5 lakh people living in that area over the next 10 days.

The state government has made arrangements for the quarantine of members of the 20 squads that have been constituted for carrying out the culling, sources said. Each team will have a veterinary doctor and four field staff.

Incidentally, Manipur banned the import of poultry products from Myanmar following reports of avian flu outbreak in Yangon a couple of months ago; Nagaland, which shares a porous border with Myanmar, took preventive measures educating poultry farmers on bird flu.

On March 20, the Centre issued a general alert following reports of bird flu in Bangladesh and Myanmar, following which Mizoram imposed a ban any official or unofficial trade of poultry and related products from the two countries. Similarly, while the Assam government sent teams of vets to districts bordering Bangladesh, Meghalaya constituted a task force to keep the state on alert.

You don’t need to say no to your chicken

What kind of bird flu has been found in Manipur?

Two labs confirm it’s the “highly pathogenic” H5 strain but govt still testing for N subtype. The H subtype governs ability of the virus to enter cells; N, the release of new virus from cells. There are 9 types of H5, some highly pathogenic, some pretty harmless. Worrying one is H5N1 strain found in Maharashtra outbreak. NIV director has confirmed H5N1 has been detected in Manipur. Even if it’s some other strain of N, govt has to cull as virus could mutate to a more deadly form.

If you live in Manipur or neighbouring areas, is there cause for concern?

So far, evidence points to only one farm near Imphal, no reports of abnormal bird deaths from elsewhere in the state. And H5N1 overwhelmingly affects birds — not humans. Humans have been infected in bird-flu outbreaks but almost all were poultry workers who came in intimate contact with the birds. There’s no evidence that H5N1 passes from human to human.

Where could the virus have come from?

Could be via illegally transported poultry from Bangladesh, China and Myanmar. China and Bangladesh reported bird flu in chickens this year. Migratory birds, wild ducks natural carriers but in this case, cause yet to be determined.

Should people in other areas of the country be worried?

No. Only ones at risk are those involved in slaughter, preparation of meat that may be infected. The outbreak appears to be very localized. Also bird flu is not a food-borne virus so eating chicken is safe. But WHO recommends that to be absolutely safe all meat should be cooked to a temperature of at least 70 degrees Celsius. Eggs should also be thoroughly cooked.

Didn’t India declare itself free of bird flu in August 2006?

Yes. After the outbreak in Feb 2006, control and containment were carried out in affected areas, more than 170,000 samples have been tested since. No fresh outbreak was reported after April 2006. When no fresh cases are reported within six months of an outbreak, the region is considered free of bird flu.

So does this outbreak change that status?

Yes, but poultry industry isn’t too worried this time. This is a remote village, it has affected backyard poultry in one farm. No trade of eggs or meat takes place from there. Some exports may be hit as there are extra-cautious countries who don’t accept meat or eggs from countries where bird flu has been detected.