Re: Pakistan - Bird Flu in Poultry/Animals Jan 23+
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=600 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR bgColor=#f4faff><TD class=heading_txt height=20> Poultry sector to be regulated, at long last</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD class=small_txt height=20>By Shahina Maqbool
2/3/2008</TD></TR><TR><TD class=small_txt>Islamabad
Attributing the re-emergence of Bird Flu in Pakistan to under ? reporting of its incidence by poultry farmers, the government Saturday announced its decision to proceed with regulation of the poultry sector by making registration an essential pre-requite for the business. A draft law has already been prepared for the purpose.
This was stated by Commissioner Animal Husbandry Rafiqul Hassan Usmani while addressing a press conference here on Saturday. Spokesman of the Ministry of Health Orya Maqbool and executive director of the National Institute of Health General (r) Masood Anwar, were also present on the occasion. The media was told that the problem is not one that relates to scarcity of financial resources, but to under-reporting of incidents of outbreak by the unregulated poultry sector constituting an estimated 26,000 poultry farms across the country.
?We are taking measures to regulate poultry farms. We need to take measures on a war footing,? Rafiq-ul-Hassan said. A draft ordinance for the purpose is said to be in the pipeline. The mushrooming of poultry farms owes itself to the fact that it only requires a No-Objection Certificate from the Ministry of Environment to establish one.
The media was informed that no human case of Avian Influenza has been reported from any part of the country ever since its recent outbreak in Karachi. ?The government, being fully aware of the myriad dimensions of the influenza pandemic, is closely monitoring the situation in collaboration with World Health Organization and has taken appropriate steps to ensure timely containment of any human cases of avian influenza,? Orya said. The spokesman of the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL) said that 18 rapid response teams have been formed to provide any assistance during any bird flu outbreak in poultry farms.
Pakistan reported over 79 outbreaks of Bird Flu in 2007 and the first few confirmed human cases of the disease. As many as 56 of the above-mentioned outbreaks involved commercial and backyard poultry while 20 were reported in wild birds, mostly crows. Orya advised people to avoid the practice of backyard poultry. He said hospitals are in a state of complete preparedness to deal with any untoward situation arising as a recent of the most recent outbreak of bird flu among poultry in Karachi. The National Institute of Health has a standard laboratory for checking of blood samples to determine the existence of the deadly H5N1 virus.
Human cases of H5N1 can happen any time, particularly in rural or peri-urban areas where people keep small poultry flocks, pigeons and peacocks which often roam freely, sometimes entering homes or sharing outdoor areas where children play. Such birds must be vaccinated.
As infected birds shed large quantities of virus in their faces, opportunities for exposure to infected droppings or to environments contaminated by the virus are abundant under such conditions. Moreover, because numerous households depend on poultry for income and food, many families sell or slaughter and consume birds when signs of illness appear in a flock, and this practice has proved difficult to change. Exposure is considered most likely during slaughter, de-feathering, butchering and preparation of poultry for cooking.
The only way to protect oneself from Bird Flu is to protect birds. If the birds eat less, lay fewer eggs, and are lethargic and sick, they should immediately be tested. Should they test positive, the entire flock should be culled and properly buried.
There is also a need to overcome existing gaps in the government?s policy of offering compensation to poultry farmers, because unless that is done, they will prefer not to report an outbreak for fear of losses. At present, farmers are paid 75 percent of the cost of production for dead and culled birds, the media was told.
</TD></TR><TR><TD> http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=94465</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=600 align=center border=0><TBODY><TR bgColor=#f4faff><TD class=heading_txt height=20> Poultry sector to be regulated, at long last</TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR><TR><TD></TD></TR><TR><TD class=small_txt height=20>By Shahina Maqbool
2/3/2008</TD></TR><TR><TD class=small_txt>Islamabad
Attributing the re-emergence of Bird Flu in Pakistan to under ? reporting of its incidence by poultry farmers, the government Saturday announced its decision to proceed with regulation of the poultry sector by making registration an essential pre-requite for the business. A draft law has already been prepared for the purpose.
This was stated by Commissioner Animal Husbandry Rafiqul Hassan Usmani while addressing a press conference here on Saturday. Spokesman of the Ministry of Health Orya Maqbool and executive director of the National Institute of Health General (r) Masood Anwar, were also present on the occasion. The media was told that the problem is not one that relates to scarcity of financial resources, but to under-reporting of incidents of outbreak by the unregulated poultry sector constituting an estimated 26,000 poultry farms across the country.
?We are taking measures to regulate poultry farms. We need to take measures on a war footing,? Rafiq-ul-Hassan said. A draft ordinance for the purpose is said to be in the pipeline. The mushrooming of poultry farms owes itself to the fact that it only requires a No-Objection Certificate from the Ministry of Environment to establish one.
The media was informed that no human case of Avian Influenza has been reported from any part of the country ever since its recent outbreak in Karachi. ?The government, being fully aware of the myriad dimensions of the influenza pandemic, is closely monitoring the situation in collaboration with World Health Organization and has taken appropriate steps to ensure timely containment of any human cases of avian influenza,? Orya said. The spokesman of the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL) said that 18 rapid response teams have been formed to provide any assistance during any bird flu outbreak in poultry farms.
Pakistan reported over 79 outbreaks of Bird Flu in 2007 and the first few confirmed human cases of the disease. As many as 56 of the above-mentioned outbreaks involved commercial and backyard poultry while 20 were reported in wild birds, mostly crows. Orya advised people to avoid the practice of backyard poultry. He said hospitals are in a state of complete preparedness to deal with any untoward situation arising as a recent of the most recent outbreak of bird flu among poultry in Karachi. The National Institute of Health has a standard laboratory for checking of blood samples to determine the existence of the deadly H5N1 virus.
Human cases of H5N1 can happen any time, particularly in rural or peri-urban areas where people keep small poultry flocks, pigeons and peacocks which often roam freely, sometimes entering homes or sharing outdoor areas where children play. Such birds must be vaccinated.
As infected birds shed large quantities of virus in their faces, opportunities for exposure to infected droppings or to environments contaminated by the virus are abundant under such conditions. Moreover, because numerous households depend on poultry for income and food, many families sell or slaughter and consume birds when signs of illness appear in a flock, and this practice has proved difficult to change. Exposure is considered most likely during slaughter, de-feathering, butchering and preparation of poultry for cooking.
The only way to protect oneself from Bird Flu is to protect birds. If the birds eat less, lay fewer eggs, and are lethargic and sick, they should immediately be tested. Should they test positive, the entire flock should be culled and properly buried.
There is also a need to overcome existing gaps in the government?s policy of offering compensation to poultry farmers, because unless that is done, they will prefer not to report an outbreak for fear of losses. At present, farmers are paid 75 percent of the cost of production for dead and culled birds, the media was told.
</TD></TR><TR><TD> http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=94465</TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR><TR><TD bgColor=#efefef></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
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