J&K bans import of live birds after 150 crows found dead in Udhampur

Amid bird flu scare looming large in some of the states, as many as 150 crows have been found dead in Jammu & Kashmir's Udhampur district on Thursday. The samples of the dead crows have been sent for testing.

The Chief Animal Husbandry Officer of Udhampur, Dr Inderjeet Singh that birds may have died due to a cold wave. "We got a report of dead crows, in the morning. We have collected 150 carcasses so far and will test them for virus. But they could have died from inclement weather in the last few days in the area," Chief Animal Husbandry Officer said.

Meanwhile, the Government of Jammu & Kashmir imposed a complete ban on the import of live birds, including poultry meat, for any purpose into the Union Territory of J & K with immediate effect, till January 14, 2021, in view of the spread of bird flu in neighbouring states.

Avian influenza cases have been reported from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, and Kerala. The central government asked the states and UTs to take up surveillance and monitoring of birds for any signs of disease and take appropriate measures for controlling it.

According to health experts, Avian influenza refers to the disease caused by infection with avian (bird) influenza (flu) Type A viruses. These viruses occur naturally among wild aquatic birds worldwide and can infect domestic poultry and other bird and animal species.