The New Nation - Internet Edition

Staff Reporter

The workers of Livestock Department yesterday started destroying over 165,000 chickens at a farm near Uttara in the city as report said that avian influenza, virus of bird flu, continued to spread to newer poultry farms almost everyday across the country.Meanwhile, according to the Bird Flu Control Room, the virus affected fowls in one more district, raising number of the affected districts to 43. The new district is Shariatpur.

This was the first detection of the avian influenza in the capital city since the virus disease of birds broke out in an alarming form in March last year.

Salauddin Khan, Deputy Director of Livestock Department, said, "We started culling the chickens after detection of the virus. Exact number of the chickens could be known after completion of the culling. But it is more than one lakh." "There is no poultry farm within one kilometer of the affected farm, named Omega Poultry Farm, owned by Al-Amin," he said.

Meanwhile, local residents claimed that the farm has 165,000 chickens.

Hundreds of local people gathered around the farm in Beraid Union under Badda police station to see the demolition operation, said the local witnesses.

Some 13,820 chickens, pigeons and eggs had been destroyed at six farms in five districts - two in Narsingdi and one each in Shariatpur, Jhenidah, Gazipur sadar and port of Narayanganj.

Since the bird flu, an epidemic affecting many Asian countries in particular-spread in the country since in March last year, some 642,679 fowls have been culled in the country's 43 districts out of 64, according to the statistics given from the control room.

Meanwhile, our Narsingdi correspondent said Special Assistant to the Chief Adviser Manik Lal Samaddar yesterday distributed cheques among the affected owners of farms in Raipura and Belabo upazilas in Narsingdi.

Manik Lal distributed cheque of Tk 12,57,955 to 12 farm owners at Batiara High School in Raipura upazila.

Zillar Rahman, DC of Narsingdi, chaired the function, while Syed Ataur Rahman, Secretary of Agriculture Resource Ministry, Sunil Chandra Ghosh, Director General of Agriculture Resource Department, Shahabuddin Khan, police super, Maj AKM Sadekul Islam, deputy commander of Army camp, owners of various farms, were present on the occasion.