Mysuru: After Mysuru Zoo was closed due to outbreak of Avian Influenza (H5N8) which resulted in the death of more than six birds, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services (DAH&VS) has issued an alert in the surrounding areas of Mysuru zoo.
The department officials have requested the residents to be vigilant and report any unnatural deaths and behaviours of birds. During the Karnataka Development Programme (KDP) review meeting held at the Zilla Panchayat here on Wednesday, Deputy Director, DAH&VS, Mysuru, P M Prasad Murthy disclosed that the area within 10-km radius of the zoo had been put on alert and the owners of poultry farms and domestic animals asked to be vigilant. The department had issued an order to collect the samples from poultry farms as well as from the houses where chickens and ducks were raised, he said adding the samples were being sent to the lab in Bengaluru and so far, H5N8 had not been detected in any birds outside the Zoo.
Regarding distribution of fodder in the district, Murthy said the department did not have sufficient fodder to meet the demands of all the farmers. So far, he said, 150 tonnes of fodder had been distributed and the remaining would be disbursed in a phased manner. “In what may come as a relief to the cattle owners, the department will open Goshalas in the district with better amenities. The Goshalas would start functioning from March this year. The proposal to open Goshalas would be submitted to the ZP committee,” Murthy revealed.
