Thane, January 20: A total of 1,500 poultry birds were culled in two villages of Maharashtra's Thane district on Wednesday after cases of bird flu were detected at these places, the authorities said. Of the 1,500 birds that were culled, as many as 1,400 were in Raita village alone, while 100 others in Atali village, the district administration said.

As cases of avian influenza were detected in Atali and Raita villages in Kalyan taluka, Thane District Collector Rajesh Narvekar ordered that these villages be declared as infected along with the areas located within one km of radius, the administration said in a statement. Bird Flu Outbreak in India: Avian Influenza Confirmed in Poultry Farms in 5 States, Culling Operations Underway; Check Current Status of Affected States.

District Deputy Commissioner of Animal Husbandry ordered that the affected poultry farms at Atali and Raita and those located within one km of surrouning areas should carry out the process of culling the birds through Rapid Response Team to prevent the spread of infection, it said.

Disposal of the dead birds in the affected area should be done as per the guidelines, it said. Narvekar ordered that the daily activities of chicken sellers and transporters within one kms area of these villages should be stopped completely till these areas are declared contagious-free, the statement said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)