On March 20, the Centre issued a general alert following reports of bird flu in Bangladesh and Myanmar, following which Mizoram imposed a ban any official or unofficial trade of poultry and related products from the two countries. Similarly, while the Assam government sent teams of vets to districts bordering Bangladesh, Meghalaya constituted a task force to keep the state on alert.

You don’t need to say no to your chicken

What kind of bird flu has been found in Manipur?

Two labs confirm it’s the “highly pathogenic” H5 strain but govt still testing for N subtype. The H subtype governs ability of the virus to enter cells; N, the release of new virus from cells. There are 9 types of H5, some highly pathogenic, some pretty harmless. Worrying one is H5N1 strain found in Maharashtra outbreak. NIV director has confirmed H5N1 has been detected in Manipur. Even if it’s some other strain of N, govt has to cull as virus could mutate to a more deadly form.

If you live in Manipur or neighbouring areas, is there cause for concern?

So far, evidence points to only one farm near Imphal, no reports of abnormal bird deaths from elsewhere in the state. And H5N1 overwhelmingly affects birds — not humans. Humans have been infected in bird-flu outbreaks but almost all were poultry workers who came in intimate contact with the birds. There’s no evidence that H5N1 passes from human to human.

Where could the virus have come from?

... contd.