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GUWAHATI, India: Six people have been detained after trying to smuggle poultry out of a remote region in northeastern India where an outbreak of bird flu has been reported, police said on Saturday.
The Indian government reported the outbreak on Wednesday in the far-flung state of Manipur.
The state government banned the sale of poultry after federal authorities confirmed dead chickens had tested positive for bird flu.
A senior police official said the six were taken into custody on Friday.
"Anybody found violating the ban on sale or purchase of chicken or transporting birds would be dealt with firmly," the official, who did not want to be named, told AFP.
India had declared itself free of bird flu last August after a February 2006 outbreak that led to a mass cull.
The World Health Organisation has recorded 319 cases of bird flu in humans worldwide, of which 192 have resulted in deaths, according to Wednesday's most recent tally.
Scientists fear the virus could mutate into a form easily spread among humans, leading to a global pandemic with the potential to kill millions.
These fears have been especially prevalent in India, a country of more than one billion people where many live close to poultry. - AFP/ac
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