Bird flu resurfaces in Bengal

KOLKATA: Bird flu has resurfaced in Darjeeling district in eastern India, West Bengal's Animal Resources Development (ARD) Minister Anisur Rehaman confirmed on Friday.

The H5NI strain of the virus has been detected in Kurseong town in Darjeeling by the High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal.

The minister that no cases had been detected after April 4 but the government had been regularly monitoring the districts.

"Last week, around 100 chickens died in Kurseong. We sent samples to the Bhopal laboratory. The officials confirmed Friday morning that the samples were positive,"  Rehaman said.

"We have already sent a team of doctors. The culling team will soon be sent. All chickens within a five kilometre radius will be culled," he added.

Bird flu had broken out in West Bengal in January this year. Avian flu had hit 13 of 19 districts in the state leading to around four million poultry birds being culled.