Flu Hello India

Discussion in 'Survival Medicine' started by Clyde, Jan 23, 2008.


  1. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    Over 2000 complain of fever, govt says ‘it means nothing’

    Express news service
    Posted online: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 at 0246 hrs IST
    Kolkata, January 22
    About 2,324 cases of people suffering from fever have been reported from the Birbhum district — Ground Zero of the bird flu outbreak in the state — in the last five days.
    “The West Bengal Government is failing to understand the gravity of the situation,” said Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare P Lakshmi, during a visit to Birbhum on Tuesday.
    Lakshmi, who is currently in the state to get a first hand assessment of the culling operations, did not find adequate health infrastructure to combat the bird flu threat. She criticised the state government for acting irresponsibly and lacking seriousness to fight the disease.
    There is no infrastructure, not even qualified doctors. We have sent pills and gear but the required equipment is not in place till date. They do not understand that this is an emergency situation and they should be prepared for it,” she added.
    She blamed the state Animal Resource Development department for the spread of the virus to new areas, as it did not carry out culling operations in a swift manner.

    The state government, however, maintained that there has been no case of H5N1 virus infecting humans, and tried to play down its own figures of fever cases in Birbhum.
    “There is no need to panic. We do not have any reports of humans being infected. Therefore, a few hundred fever cases means nothing,” said Sanchita Bakshi, state director health services. (Well, if the .gov said it, it must be true)
    According to the status report, as many as 707 fever cases were reported from Birbhum district on January 18.
    A day later and another 304 people were added to the list.
    For January 20, which happened to be a Sunday, the report does not give any figures.
    On January 21, 707 more cases were added to the existing figures and today an additional 613 cases of fever were recorded.
    The report further stated that that six central rapid response teams are assisting the state government in culling operations.
    Five human blood samples taken from South Dinajpur district have tested negative, the report added.
     
  2. Seacowboys

    Seacowboys Senior Member Founding Member

    hmmm...can't be anything to it if the government isn't concerned. I think I'll go shopping.
     
  3. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    don't drink liquids and read that post. I had a nasal gag moment with a coca cola!
     
  4. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

  5. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    I thought there was nothing to worry about?


    India swoops on homes in night raids to halt bird flu <cite>By Bappa Majumdar - Mon Jan 28, 2:35 AM PST</cite>

    <cite> Provided by: [​IMG] </cite> [​IMG] <cite class="caption">A Bangladeshi livestock vendor waiting for customers in Dhaka, 22 January 2008. Bangladeshi authorities are to start house-to-house surveillance in their latest effort to stem a worsening outbreak of bird flu, an official said Monday.(AFP/File/Farjana Khan Godhuly)</cite>
    KOLKATA, India (Reuters) - Veterinary staff in eastern India are capturing chickens in night-time raids on the backyards of homes to surprise villagers unwilling to part with their poultry as an outbreak of bird flu spread.
    Bird flu has spread to 13 of West Bengal's 19 districts, with samples of dead chickens testing positive in two new districts, officials said on Monday. In neighboring Bangladesh, the disease has spread to 29 of the its 64 districts.
    Experts fear the H5N1 strain found in both countries could mutate into a form easily transmitted from person to person, leading to a pandemic, but there have been no reported human infections in India yet.
    "It is very difficult to contain the virus among backyard poultry as villagers hide their chickens and even smuggle it to homes of distant relatives," said Anisur Rahaman, the state's animal resources minister.
    Officials said they were worried about the disease spreading to the crowded state capital, Kolkata, after bird flu hit the South 24 Parganas district on Sunday, only 20 km (12.5 miles) away from the city.
    Surveillance was in place to stop infected poultry from being smuggled into one of India's biggest cities, they said.
    Authorities also used loudspeakers and distributed leaflets in villages, urging people to hand over poultry to culling teams.
    Villagers say government compensation of a dollar a bird was not enough.
    "It's not just money, it is such a sentimental issue as villagers keep ducks and chickens as pets and also have different names to call them," Nazrul Islam of the West Bengal Poultry Association said.
    West Bengal has promised to pay more money to villagers, admitting the virus could spread further if birds were not culled quickly. In Bangladesh, villagers have ignored or not heard advice on burying or burning dead birds, health officials say.
    The World Health Organization has said it is India's most serious outbreak of bird flu.

    Over 1.5 million birds have already been culled since the deadly H5N1 virus hit the state earlier this month.
    Another half a million chickens and ducks will be slaughtered in the next few days, officials said.
    The government says laboratory tests have confirmed the H5N1 strain in at least two of West Bengal's 19 districts, but said reports from 11 other districts were likely to be the same.
    Authorities said the virus could have come from neighboring Bangladesh, also struggling to contain an outbreak of bird flu.
    Most countries and all Indian states have banned poultry products from West Bengal. But analysts said India's outbreak was too localized to have an obvious impact on the commodities markets.
    "The domestic demand for corn might go down a little because of the bird flu, but it is still early to project what impact it may have," said Anmol Sheth, President of All India Starch Manufacturers Association.
     
  6. Tango3

    Tango3 Aimless wanderer

    If they had instituted their own verson of NAIS none of this would have happened![lolol]maybe they can pass a law making birdflu illegal?[coffee2]
     
  7. MbRodge

    MbRodge Monkey+++

    BIRDS don't kill people, PEOPLE do!
     
  8. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    India isolates 26 people on bird flu fears
    01 Feb 2008 10:09:09 GMT
    <!-- 01 Feb 2008 10:09:09 GMT ## for search indexer, do not remove --> Source: Reuters

    <!-- AN5.0 article title end --> <script language="JavaScript" src="http://www.alertnet.org/bin/js/article.js"></script> <input value="13" name="CurrentSize" id="CurrentSize" type="hidden"> <!-- India isolates 26 people on bird flu fears --> <!-- Reuters --> (Adds market impact) By Bappa Majumdar KOLKATA, India, Feb 1 (Reuters) - India put 26 people in isolation after they fell sick while culling poultry in a state affected by bird flu, while medical staff were monitoring hundreds of others, officials said on Friday. Those quarantined in the eastern state of West Bengal complained of fever and respiratory distress over the past few days, but health staff said it was unlikely they had bird flu.India has not reported any human infection of the H5N1 bird flu virus in its four outbreaks of avian influenza since 2006."The preliminary tests for bird flu are negative, but more tests are being conducted and the list of sick people reviewed every day," R.S. Shukla, a senior health official, told Reuters. Bird flu has spread to 13 of West Bengal's 19 districts, spelling trouble for parts of India's poultry business. Egg exports from the world's second largest producer have dropped about 50 percent in the past two weeks, leaving the industry with losses of around $20 million, trade officials said. Consumption of poultry products has fallen to negligible levels in West Bengal, but chicken sales are recovering in the rest of India after an initial wobble when the latest outbreak was announced. Veterinary staff have culled 2.6 million birds, completing what officials said was a successful operation that had brought the bird flu situation under control. The focus now is on hundreds of medical and veterinary workers and villagers who had come into close contact with dead or sick birds. Officials said health staff returning home after the culling operation had been asked to get themselves checked. Dozens of isolation wards had been created in hospitals in the affected districts to handle any sudden rush of suspected human cases. Experts fear the H5N1 strain could mutate into a form easily transmitted from person to person, leading to a pandemic, especially in countries such as India where people live in close proximity to backyard poultry. "We are aware of the consequences of a possible human infection and we are taking all possible measures," Surjya Kanta Mishra, the state's health minister, said. Bird deaths were reported from the north Indian state of Haryana, close to New Delhi, but authorities said preliminary tests for bird flu had turned up negative. "There have been some deaths, but these are due to septicaemia and not avian flu," V.P Nehra, a senior animal husbandry official, said. (Additional reporting by Geetinder Garewal in HARYANA; Editing by Krittivas Mukherjee)
     
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