Bird Flu Outbreak Puts Kerala on High Alert

Authorities have verified that samples of birds sent for testing from Thakazhi panchayat in Kerala's Kuttanad region tested positive for bird flu. The birds tested positive for the H5N1 influenza virus, according to reports from the samples. Alappuzha, Kottayam and Pathanamthitta are the districts that make up Kuttanad. 

For examination, the samples were transferred to the National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases (ICAR) in Bhopal. District collector A Alexander said birds within one km of the infected area would be culled.  Ten teams have already been constituted to do so. Sales and movement of poultry, eggs and meat will also be restricted in 13 panchayats in the area. This is a setback for duck farmers, particularly in the Alappuzha area, as the Christmas season is just around the corner. 

It's the second time in less than a year that avian flu has been confirmed in Kuttanad's backwaters. Avian flu caused by the H5N8 strain of the Influenza A virus was found earlier this year in six locations in Kuttanad: Nedumudi, Thakazhy, Pallippad, Karuvatta, Kainakary, and Neendoor in the Kottayam district. 

The crisis arises just as duck producers in the area were prepared to cash in on the upcoming Christmas season. In other sections of the district, several farmers have lost over 10,000 birds in the last two weeks. The samples that were submitted for analysis have yet to arrive. It was the region's third avian influenza epidemic in the previous seven years, according to farmers.

Following a highly virulent avian flu pandemic caused by the H5N1 virus in 2014, thousands of ducks died or were killed. In Kuttanad, avian influenza caused by the H5N8 virus was discovered in ducks in 2016. 

What is Bird Flu?

Bird flu, also known as Avian Flu, is a kind of influenza that is spread through the air and affects birds. It can spread to people in rare circumstances, and if this happens, it can lead to person-to-person transmission (it’s Anthroprozoonotic in nature i.e capable of spreading from animals to humans), according to specialists. There are several strains of the virus, with H7N9 being the most hazardous, according to the researchers. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the avian influenza virus has several subtypes, only some of which are hazardous to humans.