Red Fort shut for public till January 26 after sample of dead crow tests positive for bird flu

New Delhi, Jan 19: A sample of a dead crow from Red Fort has tested positive for bird flu and orders have been issued to restrict the entry of public into the monument, officials said on Tuesday.

Around 15 crows were found dead in the premises of Red Fort a few days ago. A sample from a dead bird was sent to a Jalandhar-based laboratory for testing, Rakesh Singh, the director of the Delhi government's animal husbandry department said.

Entry of public into monument has been restricted till January 26 as a precautionary measure, he said. On Saturday, samples from a dead owl in the Delhi zoo had tested positive for avian influenza.

Last week, the Delhi government had banned the sale of processed and packaged chicken brought from outside the city and ordered the closure of the Ghazipur poultry market in east Delhi for 10 days after samples taken from crows and ducks at parks and lakes in the national capital tested positive for avian influenza.

Municipal corporations of the city had also imposed a temporary ban on sale and storage of poultry or processed chicken meat in view of the bird flu situation. However, the ban was lifted on Thursday after all the 100 samples taken from Ghazipur, Asia's largest poultry market, tested negative.