Bird flu spreads for poor watch, awareness

Poor monitoring mechanism of the government, absence of awareness in poultry farms and cold weather might make it difficult to contain the H5N1 virus that causes Avian influenza, commonly referred to as bird flu.
Though the government maintains that bio security measures have been beefed up in poultry farms all over the country, in reality, correspondents of The Daily Star visiting a number of poultry farms in and around the capital found that the farms lack bio security and other precautionary measures.
Poultry farm workers at Rajashon in Savar are not provided with face masks or gloves for their protection. The farms do not have footbath at entry and exit points. Disinfectants are not used properly either.
"I didn't know that it's crucial to spray disinfectants two times a day. That's why I usually spray it every other week," said Liakat Ali, owner of a local poultry farm that is rearing 3,000 chickens.
"Even though my farm is registered [with the government], none of the government livestock officials came to me and asked me to improve the bio security system here," added Liakat.
Rajan, whose family owns Sharif Poultry Farm at Savar, said the government officials come to visit the farm only when they repeatedly inform them of sickness of the chickens.
Among the poultry farms visited by the correspondents, only Shah Ali Poultry at Gabtoli appeared to be following bio security measures. Iqbal, an employee of the farm, said, "11,700 fowls were culled last year following the spread of Avian influenza in the farm. It has been 105 days since we started to rear 12,000 birds, but no official has visited the farm yet."
The government last year instructed the poultry farm owners to provide face masks and gloves to their workers and ensure that those are worn during the handling of poultry and poultry products.
Though there is no reported case of suspected bird flu infection in humans in the country yet, it does not necessarily mean that infection will not occur in future, warned experts.
The odds of birds being infected by Avian influenza (AI) are higher this winter season as low temperatures, below 20 degrees Celsius, are favourable for the spread of the H5N1 virus, the experts added.
The virus could be easily spread through affected fowls, eggs, faeces, egg crates and even vehicles that are used to transport poultry products to markets, said Dr Mohammad Fazlay Rabbi Mandol, a veterinary surgeon of upazila livestock office, Savar.
Furthermore, it can spread during the slaughtering, plucking, processing and preparation of the poultry for cooking, he added.
Precautionary measures should be multiplied to stop the spread of this lethal virus as only a gram of droplet containing the H5N1 virus can affect 10 lakh fowls, Mandol advised.
Admitting poor bio security situation in poultry farms he said, 40 percent farms are still below standard and it is not possible to monitor around 700 registered farms in his upazila with only four field supervisors.
"Due to shortage of manpower, we can visit only 17 to 18 poultry farms a day. Besides, as we don't have any magistracy power, we cannot force the poultry farm owners to reinforce bio security measures in their farms," he added.
Over 3 lakh poultry birds have been culled in the country since March last year and no vaccine against bird flu has been invented yet.
The bird dies within 48 hours of being infected with the flu and the death rate of the infected birds is hundred percent.
Experts said in the case of human infection, it is quite difficult to differentiate the Avian flu from regular seasonal flu. But there is a 90 percent chance of full recovery if antiviral is applied within 48 hours of being infected with the A H5N1 virus.
Mahmudur Rahman, director of Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR), said, "Early diagnosis is a must to stop further spread [in the entire flock of birds in a farm] and reduce human exposure to the virus. At the same time, during an outbreak in humans, it is necessary to have surveillance for animal and human infection, early diagnosis, thorough investigation, aggressive management of each case and infection control through personal protection, antiviral and vaccination."
The Avian influenza may or may not lead to pandemic (Disease outbreak over wide geographical area and involving large numbers of people) proportions, said Dan Rutz, senior communications specialist of United States Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
"The Avian influenza is often misunderstood and there is a scope for this to be considered as seasonal influenza. Influenza is a viral illness that is easily confused with other infections, such as cold and other viral infections. Influenza usually is self-limited to about a week of illness. Complications from influenza can contribute to serious secondary infections," Rutz said.
"A bird flu outbreak itself does not bring us closer to a pandemic. Bird flu transmission from animal to human is apparently inefficient. Transmission from human to human is even more inefficient. But [it is] highly lethal for humans when they do get it," he added.
To prevent the Avian influenza, World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that meat be cooked thoroughly so all parts of the meat reach an internal temperature of 70 degrees Celsius -- the temperature that destroys the Avian influenza virus.
Meanwhile, our correspondent from Dinajpur reports: A mobile court in Birganj of Dinajpur culled 2500 fowls on Sunday night after seizing the birds from the rooftop of a Dhaka-bound passenger bus, said district livestock office sources.
Our correspondent from Barisal reports: Inadequate workforce of the livestock department in six districts of the division is dampening the effort to control the spread of Avian flu.
So far, over thirty thousand fowls have been culled in the region while a large number of crows found dead after eating carcasses of infected birds.
District administrations opened check posts to control transportation of poultry, poultry products and other birds. Mass communication department of the districts are making announcements over loud speakers to create public awareness about the flu.
Sale of all types of birds and poultry products has been banned temporarily in many areas and people have been asked to avoid consuming poultry and poultry products.