| |
AGARTALA, India: An Indian state reported new bird flu cases on Tuesday, little more than a week after it finished culling thousands of chickens to contain an outbreak of the disease.
Laboratory tests confirmed the presence of the deadly H5N1 strain of the virus in dead chickens in northeastern Tripura state, which borders Bangladesh.
"This is the second time that the deadly bird flu virus has been detected in the state," Ashish Roy Barman, head of the state's animal resource department, told AFP on Tuesday.
Health officials are visiting homes to check people for symptoms. India, which reported its first outbreak of avian flu in 2006, has not reported any human infections.
Checkpoints have been put in place to stop the transportation of chickens or poultry products outside the bird-flu zone.
Border guards along the 864-kilometre border with Bangladesh, which all but surrounds the tiny state, have also been put on alert.
Indian officials have expressed fears the virus may be spreading from Bangladesh.
Tripura is the second state after West Bengal in the country's east to report an outbreak of avian influenza this year.
Earlier this month, more than 40,000 birds were culled in the state following an outbreak of the disease.
The H5N1 strain of the virus has killed more than 230 people worldwide since late 2003. Health experts fear the strain could mutate into a form easily transmitted from person to person, leading to a pandemic. - AFP/de
|
