40,000 birds culled, Rs 50 lakh compensation

Agartala, Apr 13 (UNI) The Tripura government has paid Rs 50 lakh compensation to the poultry farmers, whose birds were culled following outbreak of bird flu, in bordering villages of Dhalai district's Kamalpur sub-division.

About 40,000 birds have been culled so far while Animal Resource Development (ARD) department imposed a complete ban on poultry farming in avian flu affected villages.

State ARD Commissioner U Venkateswarulu said the massive culling operation, that began on April 8 with the advise of High Security Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (ADDL), ended yesterday.

He said chicks and ducks were culled at Mohanpur, Bilashcherra, Mayacherra, Halahali and Maracherra near Tripura-Bangladesh border in Kamalpur area last week.

''After culling, mopping up operations have begun in 32 villages.

This includes destroying of poultry sheds, cleaning and disinfecting of affected areas and recovery of any hidden poultry birds,'' he added.

He futher informed that not a single case of human being affected with flu has been reported so far.

Meanwhile, as precautionary measures, poultry farming was banned for the next six months in the affected areas and the department had incurred an expenditure of Rs 50 lakh to tackle the situation.

He also informed that the disease has not spread to other areas in the state.

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