BHUBANESWAR: A total of 20,000 birds were culled at the Central Poultry Development Organisation (CPDO) farm near Kalinga Stadium here on Sunday, even as sale of chicken and poultry products fell sharply across the capital city.The state government engaged six rapid response teams, comprising five personnel each, to launch its culling exercise at CPDO, a central government agency, to prevent the spread of the deadly bird flu virus. The CPDO farm has around 29,000 poultry birds including a good number of Banaraja, Kalinga Brown and RIR varieties used for breeding. The Centre ordered culling within a three km radius of the CPDO farm after the Indian Veterinary Research Institute's ( IVRI) High Security Animal Disease Laboratory ( HSADL) in Bhopal confirmed presence of H5N1 virus, which causes avian influenza, there.
"We culled 11,955 chicks and 8045 adult birds on Sunday. Culling will continue till all poultry birds within three km of the epicentre (CPDO farm) are killed," nodal officer of fisheries and animal resources development department Balaram Sahu said.
Official sources said an estimated 48,000 birds could eventually fall prey to the culling exercise as a poultry farm of Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology with around 9000 fowls and Salia Sahi with another 9000 birds fall under the "alert zone".
During the past few weeks, the state government had undertaken culling activities at Keranga in Khurda district and Bahanada in Betanoti block of Mayurbhanj district to prevent the spread of the dreaded H5N1 virus. While 31,912 poultry birds were eliminated at Keranga, 11,216 poultry fowls were buried at Bahanada and adjoining areas in Betanoti.
The bird flu danger has led to sharp fall in sale and consumption of chicken and other poultry products in the city. The administration has also ordered closure of all Opolfed and chicken counters within the "alert zone".
