Bird flu, African swine flu break out in India's Kerala

NEW DELHI, Oct. 28 (Xinhua) -- Bird flu and African swine flu outbreaks have been reported in India's southern state of Kerala, officials said Friday.

While the bird flu has been detected in the state's Alappuzha district, the African swine flu was reported in the Kottayam district.

Officials said an outbreak of bird flu was confirmed at Vazhuthanam in Haripad municipality in Alappuzha, where 1,500 birds died in the past week.

Following the mass death of ducks, the animal husbandry department (AHD) sent samples of dead birds to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) for analyses, which tested positive for avian influenza.

District Collector V.R. Krishna Teja was quoted by local media as saying the presence of H5N1 subtype of the influenza A virus was reported in ducks.

"As many as 20,471 birds, mostly ducks, will have to be culled as part of the containment measures. Eight rapid response teams have been constituted and we hope to begin the culling operations on Thursday morning," an AHD official was quoted by local media as having said.

Authorities have also banned the movement of birds to and from within a one-kilometer radius of the hotspot.

Meanwhile, authorities have confirmed the outbreak of African swine flu in the state's Kottayam district.

"African swine flu has been confirmed at a pig farm at Meenachil Panchayat in Kottayam district," the state-run broadcaster All India Radio (AIR) said Friday.

"The district authorities said the virus infection was confirmed after samples taken from the farm were tested at the NIHSAD in Bhopal. A one-kilometer stretch around the farm has been declared infected where 48 pigs have been culled as a preventive measure. A 10-kilometer radius around the farm is being closely monitored."

The authorities have also shut down shops selling pig meat and steps have been taken to ensure that no pigs are being transported from the infected zone.