A LARGE NUMBER OF BIRDS CULLED

More than 3,000 poultry birds were culled on Saturday evening in six villages of Old Malda block in Malda district of West Bengal.
Deputy Director of Animal Resources Department Nikhil Kumar Shit said, "Mostly pet chickens were culled this evening as they are difficult to catch during daytime. These villages close to Satgharia village, the epicentre of bird flu outbreak in the district, were left out."
He said 2,000 more birds have to be culled on Sunday as Poultry Census Report of 2003 estimates the presence of 5,000 pet chickens in the villages.
Earlier, more than 20,000 chickens were culled in 24 villages of Narhatta and Kotwali gram panchayat of English Bazar block in the district where culling and mopping operations were continuing simultaneously.
Observers from Kolkata and NICED in Delhi advised District Magistrate Sridhar Kumar Ghosh on the last day of culling in Malda on Saturday to seek more time to complete killing of birds in the six villages.
Officials said 287 more chicken were killed during mopping operations.
However, a group of women overpowered the members of culling teams and snatched away chicken in Babupur village of the district.
Officials said awareness campaigns on birdflu outbreak and the avian influenza virus continued earlier in the day and culling operations of pet chickens resumed late in the afternoon and went on till night.
The DM said culling was carried out in some villages under Mahispathani gram panchayat area in Old Malda block.
Mopping up operation was carried out in 24 villages under Narhatta and Kotwali gram panchayat of English Bazar Block where culling had been complete, he told PTI.
Asked about media reports of death of large number of birds and chicken in Alinagar area under Bargachi-I gram panchayat of Gajole block, Ghosh said, "No fresh report of any deaths of large number of birds and chicken were reported from this place."