India is not the only country reporting the presense of the virus, France too has said the virus was detected in a wild duck near Lyon. The virus has also been detected in Germany and Italy. French President Chirac, due on a visit to India, has initiated a European action plan. The French plan to impose a 3 km quarantine zone and vaccinate zoo animals and its millions of ducks and geese.
In Africa, Egypt has reported detection of the virus in the state, and authorities have ordered 7 zoos to shut down.
Coming back home, the action plan is in place already, and mass culling of birds has begun. Indian scientists and doctors have been dispatched to the affacted areas and drug maker Cipla has said its vaccine, Tamiflu will be ready for use in a weeks time. Already one death in S is suspected to be caused by the virus.
Silver lining: Within hours, all cranked up, Govt had action plan ready since December
Within hours of the Bhopal lab confirming bird flu, 60 teams were already in the area, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases in the capital had sent a Rapid Response unit to Maharashtra, epidemiologists and microbiologists from Pune’s National Institute of Virology reached this evening along with several state government teams and clinicians from Central government hospitals.
The Centre this time was ready with its contingency plan.
The key elements of the plan being already put into effect:
• Maharashtra and Gujarat put on alert. Principal Secretaries of both these states to hold regular meetings.
• District Health Officers and Chief Veterinary Officers, District Animal Husbandry officers to be stationed in the area.
• Sanitising the area where bird deaths have been reported, restricting all human and vehicular movement.
• An area of 3-km radius from the infection site declared an “alert zone.” All villages and habitation within that area to be identified.
• Area to be declared infectious. The area beyond 3-km radius upto 10 km to be declared “surveillance zone.”
• Identification of staff as well as vehicles directly involved with the unit. Detailed information gathering about recent movement of people and equipment.
• Culling (selective kill-ing) of all birds in the farm as well as those in the “alert zone” in presence of district authorities. About 8 lakh birds to be culled from tomorrow. Farmers to be compensated for culling.
• Culled birds, along with diseased birds, to be burnt or buried (5 quintals of wood to be used for 100 kilograms of poultry). Certificate to this effect to be obtained by the local authority.
• All poultry products to be buried.
• Closure of all poultry and egg shops within a 10-kilometre radius.
• NICD will supply protective gear including facemasks and gloves, gumboots to all farm personnel.
• Tamiflu to be given to high-risk people: mostly “contacts and cullers.” Government has 1 million doses.
• Vaccination of poultry in surveillance zone, booster dose to be given after eight weeks. About 7.5 lakh vaccines will be send to the area.
• Contacts to be quarantined.
• Disinfection procedures to be followed in surrounding areas. Bio-security measures to be followed in the farms.
• Government also likely to undertake an awareness plan.
• People in the area to avoid contact with chickens, ducks or other poultry. Children at risk.
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First suspected human death from bird flu in India
A man has died of suspected bird flu in western India, a top official told Reuters.
"A poultry farm owner died on Friday in Surat district. Local tests have confirmed bird flu but we have sent samples to the national laboratory. A final report is awaited," Vatsala Vasudev, the top district administrator of Surat in western Gujarat state, told Reuters.
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