Lanka halts India poultry imports due to bird flu

Colombo, July 28: Sri Lanka has halted poultry imports from neighbouring India following an outbreak of bird flu there, the government said today. India confirmed on Thursday that an outbreak of bird flu in poultry in the remote northeast of the country was the H5N1 strain.

''India has reported bird flu in the country so we have immediately taken precautionary measures of temporary prestrictions on birds and poultry and poultry products to Sri Lanka,'' said Dr S K R Amarasekara, director-general of the government's Animal Production and Health Department.

Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan have also had outbreaks of the H5N1 strain this year, but Sri Lanka has so far reported no infections.

Reuters>