Gujarat: Bird flu detected in crow samples in Surat, Vadodara

Bird flu cases have been confirmed in Gujarat's Surat and Vadodara districts as some samples of dead crows from there have tested positive for the avian influenza, officials said on Monday.

Samples of four crows collected from two places at Bardoli taluka in Surat on January 6 were sent to a Bhopal- based laboratory, Nilam Dave, deputy director of animal husbandry department, Surat, said.

"They have tested positive for the bird flu," the official said.

Besides, three out of five crow samples collected from Vasantpura village in Savli taluka of Vadodara, where 25 crows died on January 6, have also tested positive, Vadodara animal husbandry department's deputy director Prakash Darji said.

On Sunday, 57 pigeons were found dead in Kia village of Vadodara's Karjan taluka and their samples have been sent for confirmation to the Bhopal-based lab, he added.

As a precautionary measure, surveys were undertaken in these two districts, especially within a 10-km radius of the spot where the birds were found dead, officials said.

Gujarat reported its first case of avian influenza on January 8 when two lapwing samples from Junagadh district tested positive for the bird flu virus.

After the Gujarat government sounded an alert about the bird flu on January 5, several parts of the state have reported dozens of dead birds, especially crows, ducks, pigeons, peacocks and lapwings.

Samples of the carcasses have been sent to the lab in Bhopal and results in many cases are awaited.