Kerala Confirms Bird Flu is Deadly and Highly Contagious Strain

Kerala Confirms Bird Flu is Deadly and Highly Contagious Strain
South | Reported by Sneha Mary Koshy (with inputs from agencies) | Updated: November 27, 2014 15:56 IST
Ads by Google
Alleppey Houseboat Cruise – Nice houseboat and good hospitality super luxury houseboats09947482888
www.alleppeyhouseboatcruise.org
Kerala Confirms Bird Flu is Deadly and Highly Contagious Strain
The virus has killed nearly 16,000 infected ducks in Kerala.


submit to reddit
inShare
Flipemail
KOTTAYAM: Kerala has confirmed that the outbreak of bird flu in the state is of the feared H5N1 strain, which is highly contagious and can be fatal to humans.

Government officials said that massive culling of birds is being done to prevent the spread of the disease.

The virus itself killed about 15,000 infected ducks in Kottayam and another 500 in nearby Alappuzha, the first cases of the disease in the country since February this year.

The H5N1 strain caused the deaths of nearly 400 people and hundreds of millions of poultry after it spread from Asia into Europe and Africa in 2005-2006.

More than 200,000 birds have been culled in the state in the last few days in and around the villages where the outbreaks were found; an intensive surveillance campaign had been launched in a 10-km radius around the area to ensure that the virus does not spread further, the union Health Ministry has said.