India: It?s Spreading

[ukcz]

I asked him if any bird infected by the virus could fly long distances. His answer was an emphatic "No".

Wrong answer, as in that is just plain untrue!

 

[Clytie]

15,000 Birds Dead in Nandubar

15,000 Birds Dead in Nandubar

Chicken Death Probe

OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
The Telegraph, Calcutta, India
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060214/asp/nation/story_5842662.asp?headline=Chicken~death~probe<br%20/%20target=

New Delhi, Feb. 13: Scientists at the high-security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal are investigating the cause of death of several thousand chickens in Maharashtra?s Nandurbar district over the past week.​

The laboratory received six dead birds and many faecal samples on Saturday from animal husbandry authorities monitoring the outbreak in Nandurbar that has claimed at least 15,000 birds, director Hare Krishna Pradhan said.

Four of the six birds appeared to have died of Marek?s disease, a cancerous condition caused by a herpes-like virus in poultry, Pradhan said. ?We?re analysing all the samples we?ve got, and hope to have a clearer picture by Wednesday morning.?

Pradhan said animal husbandry officials suspect the chickens died of Ranikhet, an infectious poultry disease caused by a virus. Three years ago, it had claimed more than 10,000 birds in north India, he said.

In the past year, the Bhopal laboratory has screened nearly 30,000 tissue and faecal samples from birds to rule out the H5N1 avian influenza virus.

 

[Theresa42]

Chickens die in thousands; govt sees no bird flu

Chickens die in thousands; govt sees no bird flu

Chickens die in thousands; govt sees no bird flu
TIMES NEWS NETWORK [THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2006 02:59:37 AM]

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government is doing its best to calm fears of a possible avian flu outbreak in the state after thousands of poultry chicken were reported to have died over the past few weeks along the Maharashtra-Gujarat border. Following reports of the deaths, the government issued a release stating the disease killing the chicken is likely to be Newcastle ? commonly known as Ranikhet disease.

DL Shivankar, under secretary in the state?s animal husbandry ministry, told ET that there is no need for panic. :re: ?We have sent the samples to a testing facility at Bhopal, just to rule out the possibility of bird flu,? he said. Results of the tests are awaited.

The government official stressed that vigilance had been stepped up and that no case of avian flu has been reported so far. Meanwhile, the latest reports indicate that the H5N1 strain of influenza, which causes avian flu, has spread to Nigeria. The disease which originated in Asia has now emerged in some countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The confirmation of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in domestic birds in northern Nigeria marks the further geographical spread of this virus.

Although all evidence to date indicates that the virus does not spread easily from birds to humans, the World Health Organisation has advocated careful monitoring of the situation. The Indian government claims to have drafted an influenza preparedness plan. Officials in government told ET that efforts were on to co-ordinate with Saarc and Asean countries.

?Periodic reviews are taken by the minister of health and the minister of agriculture. Sectoral co-ordination between the department of health and the department of animal husbandry has been established. A joint monitoring group, under the chairmanship of DG, DGHS, has been formed, which meets regularly to review the situation,? a government official said.

According to sources, technical guidelines have been developed on clinical management, laboratory and public health measures. The department of agriculture has also developed guidelines for prevention, reporting and spread of the disease in poultry. Laboratories of the ICMR and NICD have been identified for laboratory diagnosis of human cases, officials said.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1416900.cms

 

[Bruce]

INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

8 confirmed cases of bird flu in India

Agencies
Posted online: Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 1638 hours IST
Updated: Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 1654 hours IST

New Delhi, February 18: The Animal Husbandry department has confirmed eight cases of bird flu in Maharashtra. Three reports have come in from the Nandurbar district of Maharashtra.

This is for the first time that this disease has been reported in India. However, there are no reports of infected people.

A team of microbiologists have been stationed at the poultry and various tests are being performed. The area has been sealed off and no one is being allowed inside so that the virus does not spread.

The Animal Husbandry department will also be informing the people about the hazards of the disease and ask them to maintain complete hygiene

http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=63075

 

[Bruce]

18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

8 confirmed cases of bird flu in India

Agencies
Posted online: Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 1638 hours IST
Updated: Saturday, February 18, 2006 at 1654 hours IST

New Delhi, February 18: The Animal Husbandry department has confirmed eight cases of bird flu in Maharashtra. Three reports have come in from the Nandurbar district of Maharashtra.

This is for the first time that this disease has been reported in India. However, there are no reports of infected people.

A team of microbiologists have been stationed at the poultry and various tests are being performed. The area has been sealed off and no one is being allowed inside so that the virus does not spread.

The Animal Husbandry department will also be informing the people about the hazards of the disease and ask them to maintain complete hygiene

http://www.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=63075

 

[Bruce]

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Indian officials say have confirmed country’s first bird flu virus case


(AFP)
18 February 2006

MUMBAI - Indian government officials on Saturday said that a laboratory had confirmed the country’s first outbreak of the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus in chickens.

“Fifty-thousand birds have died. We have sent dead birds to the highest level laboratory in (the state of) Bhopal. They have confirmed H5N1 bird flu” in chickens, said Anees Ahmed, the minister for animal husbandry for western Maharashtra state."<o =""></o>
He said the outbreak was at a chicken farm of some 200,000 birds at Nandurbar near the border with Gujarat state.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/subcontinent/2006/February/subcontinent_February764.xml&section=subcontinent&col=

​

 

[viamede]

Re: 18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

Re: 18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

So its true then....Hell has frozen over...thought so...

 

[Bruce]

2 lakh Tamiflu 200.000 for 1,080,264,388

2 lakh Tamiflu 200.000 for 1,080,264,388

2 lakh Tamiflu 200.000 for 1,080,264,388 persons
[FONT=&quot]Or should one say 20.000 treatments for [/FONT]1,080,264,388 persons


http://ia.rediff.com/money/2006/feb/18hetero.htm
Hetero to deliver 2 lakh Tamiflu capsules

February 18, 2006 18:47 IST

Amid reports of bird flu cases in India, Hyderabad-based Hetero Drugs on Saturday said it has got an order from the Centre for an additional two lakh capsules of Tamiflu.

"We would be delivering another two lakh capsules in the next three-four days," Srinivas Reddy, director, Hetero Drugs told PTI from Hyderabad.

1st suspected case of bird flu in India

He said the company, which has been granted licence by the government for bulk manufacturing of the drug in Indian market, have "already made available five lakh capsules to it (the government)".

Reddy said the company has Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient of the drug equivalent of one million capsules in stock.

"It would need seven days for the API to be made into capsules, which could then be supplied wherever needed," he said.

Reddy said the company had supplied the avian flu medicine to the government at a rate of Rs 710 per strip of ten capsules.

----------
Lakh
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search

A lakh (also spelled lac or laksha) is a unit in a traditional number system, still widely used in Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, and Pakistan. One lakh is equal to a hundred thousand (105). A hundred lakhs make a crore or ten million.

This system of measurement also introduces separators into numbers in a place that is different from what is common outside India. For example, 3 million (30 lakh) would be written as 30,00,000.

 

[HenryN]

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Maps updated

http://www.recombinomics.com/H5N1_Map_2006_AfricaF.html

http://www.recombinomics.com/H5N1_Map_2005_QinghaiL.html

 

[HenryN]

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed 18.2.06

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/02180601/H5N1_India.html

 

[Bruce]

India testing humans some under observation

India testing humans some under observation

India testing humans for bird flu virus-official
18 Feb 2006 15:34:10 GMT
Source: Reuters


NEW DELHI, Feb 18 (Reuters) - India is testing eight human beings for the H5N1 bird flu virus while four more are being kept under observation, federal Health Secretary P.K. Hota told Reuters on Saturday.

"We are testing eight humans for bird flu virus in the affected area in Maharashtra. Their blood samples have been sent to testing. Four, including three children, are being kept under observation," Hota said.
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/SP264824.htm

 

[mariella]

Re: 18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

Re: 18.2.06 Inida H5N1 confirmed in birds

http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/02/18/1385707.htm

India warns against eating poultry

(UPI Top Stories Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Indian officials are warning against eating poultry after at least 50,000 birds were found dead with bird flu and possibly 400,000 more were found infected.

The BBC reports more than 500,000 chickens were to be culled to stave off a larger outbreak of the deadly H5N1 strain of the virus.

Indian officials have confirmed the chickens on farms in the western Maharashtra region had the virus and regional Minister Anees Ahmed said 200 veterinarians would head to the area where the virus was found.

A 2-mile perimeter has been quarantined to stop any further contamination of livestock.

No humans have come down with the bird flu in the region but a warning is posted against eating poultry as a precaution.

The World Health Organization reports more than 90 people have died worldwide from the deadly strain of the bird flu since it was found in 2003.

It hasn't mutated to pass easily from human to human, as health experts fear, and most of the deaths are attributed to eating or being around infected birds.

[ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]

I sure hope I did this right, as it is the first time I ever tried to get an article here, not just a link.

 

[Bruce]

INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

Avian bird flu: 8 people admitted to hospital
[ Saturday, February 18, 2006 09:52:19 pmPTI ]

DHULE (MAHARASHTRA): Eight people were on Saturday admitted to a government hospital at Navapur, for suspected bird flu and about 80 blood samples were sent to laboratory for test, health department sources said here.

Around two lakh chickens were destroyed at Navapur and buried as a precautionary measure, on Saturday.

There are 57 poultries around Navapur.

Sources said since past two-days death of at least 20,000 chickens was reported at Navapur in Nandurbar district of north Maharashtra.
Official sources here said eight of the 11 chicken samples sent to Bhopal's laboratory for confirming Bird Flu were found positive.

Meanwhile, Animal Husbandary, Commissioner, Vijay Kumar, on Saturday conducted a meeting of concerned officials to discuss steps to prevent the further spread of the disease.

Navapur Municipal Council has issued notices to the mutton shop-owners to close-down their shops with immediate effect, sources added.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1419936.cms

 

[Sally Furniss]

Re: INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

Re: INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

Navapur Municipal Council has issued notices to the mutton shop-owners to close-down their shops with immediate effect, sources added.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1419936.cms

Are they saying they have bird flu in sheep?

 

[Bruce]

Re: INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

Re: INDIA 8 people admitted to hospital

Are they saying they have bird flu in sheep?

I ques so, WHO knows, im not on the buss. :surrender:<o =""></o>

 

[Bruce]

No BF in INDIA no need to panic, govt. mistaken

No BF in INDIA no need to panic, govt. mistaken

No need to panic, govt. mistaken

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-1420146,curpg-1.cms
PUNE: The death of thousands of birds in Nandurbar district is not due to bird flu, as declared by the state government, according to Anuradha Desai, chairperson of the National Egg Co-ordination Committee and Venkateshwara Hatcheries Private Ltd (VHPL), the country's largest poultry company.

"It is some mistake. I am surprised and shocked at how the government has declared that it is bird flu on the basis of just one report," Desai said.

Speaking to TOI, Desai said there has not been a single case of bird flu at the Poultry Diagnostic and Research Centre, a sister concern of Venkateshwara Hatcheries.

According to her, Union agricultural minister Sharad Pawar has agreed for samples to be sent to another laboratory in India and one abroad for a second opinion. Desai said the deaths are more likely due to a seasonal disease called Ranikhet or Newcastle, which usually occurs at the onset of summer. "There's no need for alarm as it is a routine situation", she said.

Moreover, the poultry farmers in the region, where maximum deaths occurred, neither discarded the birds in time nor vaccinated them against Ranikhet, she said.

"In this case, they kept some of the birds for 100 weeks because the prices of eggs were good. Therefore, the effect of the vaccination, which usually lasts for 72-weeks, would have run out," Desai said.

 

[Bruce]

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td class="articleheader">Delhi has a familiar disease



</td></tr><tr><td class="articleauthor">RASHEED KIDWAI</td></tr><tr><td class="story" align="left">

Bhopal, Feb. 18: Rapiddissemination of information – that’s the cornerstone of the fight against any contagion, but not if Delhi can help it.

The High Security Animal Disease Laboratory in Bhopal, the only one in Asia equipped to deal with bird flu, developed cold feet for a few hours this evening after confirming that the deadly virus has arrived in India.

“Yes, it is bird flu,” an official confirmed in the afternoon. Hours later, however, he was less sure: “It was a preliminary report and we need to confirm it.”

The official had been taking calls from across the country. However, sources in Delhi said a few calls from the capital made the officials of the lab clam up.

The sources said some decision-makers in Delhi were upset with the laboratory for creating a “scare”. They feared that businesses such as poultry, tourism and aviation would be hit and conveyed their displeasure to the lab.


By night, however, an official at the lab again confirmed that some samples had tested positive. “But there is no need to panic,” he added.



​

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060219/asp/frontpage/story_5866151.asp






</td></tr></tbody></table>

 

[viamede]

First suspected human death from bird flu in India

First suspected human death from bird flu in India

First suspected human death from bird flu in India
Sun Feb 19, 2006 10:22 AM IST

AHMEDABAD, India (Reuters) - A man has died of suspected bird flu in western India, a top official said on Sunday, a day after India reported its first bird flu infections in poultry.

"A poultry farm owner died on Friday in Surat district. Local tests have confirmed bird flu but we have sent samples to the national laboratory. A final report is awaited," Vatsala Vasudev, the top district administrator of Surat in western Gujarat state, told Reuters.

Gujarat is adjacent to Maharashtra state, where 50,000 birds died in past days and tests on some of the fowl proved positive for the H5N1 avian flu virus.

The dead man, Ganesh Sonarkar, 27, was a resident of Nandurbar district of Maharashtra state, Vasudev said. She did not elaborate why Sonarkar had travelled to Surat.

"An alert has been sounded across Gujarat following the outbreak," the official said.
A local health official in Surat, O.P. Tiwari, said Sonarkar was admitted to a hospital in the town about 10 days ago and was "provisionally diagnosed with bird flu".

"He died on Friday," Tiwari said.

Adding to the sense of crisis, blood samples of eight people have also been sent for testing to a virology laboratory in the western city of Pune. Four other people, including three children, were under observation. It was not clear if Sonarkar was among the eight being tested.

"We sent blood samples of these people who are associated with poultry because they had cold and cough," Vijay Satbir Singh, Maharashtra's top health official, told Reuters.

"We want to make sure they don't have any kind of flu."

Health workers in Maharashtra began culling about 300,000 chickens and vaccinating birds on Sunday.

Maharashtra, India's richest and most industrialised state, has hundreds of poultry farms and officials say there are around 900,000 fowl in Nandurbar alone.

T.P. Doke, the state's director of health services, said health workers were also distributing protective clothing, masks and preventive drugs to poultry workers.

The H5N1 virus is known to have infected 171 people worldwide since late 2003, killing 93 of them. Two hundred million birds across Asia, parts of the Middle East, Europe and Africa have died of the virus or been culled.

So far most victims of bird flu have had direct or indirect contact with chickens, but there are fears the virus might mutate into a strain easily passed among people, causing a pandemic in which millions could die.



http://in.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2006-02-19T101416Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-237323-2.xml

 

[viamede]

First suspected human death from bird flu in India

First suspected human death from bird flu in India

First suspected human death from bird flu in India
Sun Feb 19, 2006 10:22 AM IST

AHMEDABAD, India (Reuters) - A man has died of suspected bird flu in western India, a top official said on Sunday, a day after India reported its first bird flu infections in poultry.

"A poultry farm owner died on Friday in Surat district. Local tests have confirmed bird flu but we have sent samples to the national laboratory. A final report is awaited," Vatsala Vasudev, the top district administrator of Surat in western Gujarat state, told Reuters.

Gujarat is adjacent to Maharashtra state, where 50,000 birds died in past days and tests on some of the fowl proved positive for the H5N1 avian flu virus.

The dead man, Ganesh Sonarkar, 27, was a resident of Nandurbar district of Maharashtra state, Vasudev said. She did not elaborate why Sonarkar had travelled to Surat.

"An alert has been sounded across Gujarat following the outbreak," the official said.

A local health official in Surat, O.P. Tiwari, said Sonarkar was admitted to a hospital in the town about 10 days ago and was "provisionally diagnosed with bird flu".

"He died on Friday," Tiwari said.

Adding to the sense of crisis, blood samples of eight people have also been sent for testing to a virology laboratory in the western city of Pune. Four other people, including three children, were under observation. It was not clear if Sonarkar was among the eight being tested.

"We sent blood samples of these people who are associated with poultry because they had cold and cough," Vijay Satbir Singh, Maharashtra's top health official, told Reuters.

"We want to make sure they don't have any kind of flu."
Health workers in Maharashtra began culling about 300,000 chickens and vaccinating birds on Sunday.

Maharashtra, India's richest and most industrialised state, has hundreds of poultry farms and officials say there are around 900,000 fowl in Nandurbar alone.

T.P. Doke, the state's director of health services, said health workers were also distributing protective clothing, masks and preventive drugs to poultry workers.

The H5N1 virus is known to have infected 171 people worldwide since late 2003, killing 93 of them. Two hundred million birds across Asia, parts of the Middle East, Europe and Africa have died of the virus or been culled.

So far most victims of bird flu have had direct or indirect contact with chickens, but there are fears the virus might mutate into a strain easily passed among people, causing a pandemic in which millions could die.



http://in.today.reuters.com/news/new...a-237323-2.xml

 

[HenryN]

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

Re: INDIA Bird flu confirmed (& rumors of humans) 18.2.06

Map updated

http://www.recombinomics.com/H5N1_Map_2006_AfricaF.html