CPDO to Take in 2,500 Chicks
INDIA - The Central Poultry Development Organization and Training Institute (CPDOTI) will bring in 2,500 chicks on its campus at Hessarghatta on 22 February.The New Indian Express reports that they will be put in different shelters to see if there are any remnants of the bird flu virus which had created a havoc a few months ago.
The blood samples of these birds will be sent to a laboratory in Bhopal on a weekly basis and only after getting the clearance, the institute will resume its normal operations, CDPO Director Rajeshwar Rao said.
Since the post-surveillance activity is over, 2,500 birds brought from University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Hebbal, would be put in 53 sheds. These birds would be closely monitored by the CPDO officials.
According to an officer, the institute would not be getting turkeys. Bird flu was first detected in turkeys and around 3,600 turkeys were killed to prevent the virus from spreading to other birds on the campus.
“We had to cull 33,000 birds, including 19,235 chickens, 13,673 ducks and 370 emus, and 250 officials were quarantined at the complex for more than one month,” said the official.
An official from the Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences Department said their department would monitor and check farms close to the CPDO and UAS campus.
The bird flu was detected in October and the state government had ordered closure of chicken shops within the 10 km radius of the CPDO.
The ban was lifted after a few weeks.