India, Bangladesh April 6 thru August 27 2008

Culling suffers as polls get priority

The state government employees attached to the Nadia district administration appear to be more active in panchayat election-related work instead of the culling operation following the re-emergence of avian influenza among the chickens in Ranaghat-II block.
This distraction has delayed the culling operation by one day, as the district administration faced difficulties in accumulating employees for the operation.
It has also raised questions about the seriousness of the state government employees to contain the disease, especially when rural polls are around the corner. "Most of our employees who were engaged in the culling and mopping up operations earlier at various places in the district, are indifferent to go further in the culling operation in Ranaghat. They argued that they are now engaged in the pre-poll work and this time if they are involved in the culling operation, they would be under mental stress.

An employee in the district collectorate office and also a member of the coordination committee (who did not wish to disclose his name) said, "I am confused why this deadly virus resurfaced again in the district. If it happens repeatedly then how many times we will be involved in the culling operation?

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Sun Apr 06, 2008 at 21:20:08 PM UTC

Bangladesh: 2,300 fowls culled in Dinajpur

Around 2,300 domestic and poultry fowls of two villages were culled in Birganj upazila here Tuesday night after detection of avian influenza, reports UNB.

(snip

They said some fowls of D-way Trust Poultry Farm died recently in the locality. Later, the virus was confirmed after laboratory test.

http://www.independent-banglad...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Mon Apr 07, 2008 at 05:21:27 AM UTC

Gov't Report #1

AI CONFIRMED IN TRIPURA VILLAGE ; CULLING TO START TOMORROW
19:42 IST
The High Security Animal Disease Laboratory, Bhopal has confirmed positive result for Avian Influenza in respect of one sample collected from Village Mohanpur, Gram Panchayat Mohanpur, Block Salema, Sub-division Kamalpur of Dhalai district in Tripura on 07.04.2008. The focus of infection is just half a kilometer from the international border.

In pursuance of the above test results, a notification has been issued to the Government of Tripura and others concerned.

The officers of the Government of India and the State Government have already reached the affected area and formulated a plan of action to launch control and containment operations against the disease. The area of infection has been sealed and no movement, to and fro, of poultry and poultry products is being allowed. The required number of Rapid Response Teams have already been constituted. The culling operations will start on 8th April 2008 and involve 15,000 to 20,000 poultry birds, mostly in backyard. These are likely to be completed in three days. The local administration, in association with veterinary authorities, have already started holding meetings in the area to sensitize the villagers about the disease.  

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 01:16:52 AM UTC

Gov't Report #2

Apart from notification of outbreak of Avian Influenza among poultry in Jalpaiguri district on 27th March, 2008, no further outbreaks have been notified.

Jalpaiguri

In the affected area of Jalpaiguri district active house-to-house surveillance is continuing in 0-3 Km area. A population of 29253 has been covered. 7 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

In 3-10 Km area, a population of 96184 has been covered.  119 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

73 cases of fever/URI have reported in the hospital. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

228 animal health workers are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

Adequate stock of Oseltamivir, personal protective equipments are available with the State/district authorities.

Malda

In Malda, active house-to-house surveillance has been completed.

There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

The situation is being monitored.

http://pib.nic.in/release/rele...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 01:18:10 AM UTC

Indypokerboy41, you have e-mail. n/t

"I am opposed to any form of tyranny over the mind of man."  Thomas Jefferson

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by: History Lover @ Wed Apr 09, 2008 at 13:32:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

India/testing in isolated villages

4-8-08 http://ara.reuters.com/article...

India begin the execution of chickens in the state where the bird flu appeared

Tue Apr 8, 2008 8:52am  Guwahati (India) (Reuters) - India on Tuesday began the execution of thousands of chickens and conducting medical tests on the population in isolated villages in the north east of the country near the borders of Bangladesh after tests proved that the dead chickens infected with avian influenza.............  

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by: pugmom @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 14:24:11 PM UTC

Culling starts in 8 Tripura panchayat areas

Agartala, April 8: Culling operation has started as eight panchayat areas under Kamalpur sub-division in Dhalai district has been declared as avian flu-affected areas, as reports of death of chicks and ducks are arriving from new areas of adjoining districts.

Aghor Debbarma, minister for animal resource development, said that all precautionary measures have been taken to prevent spread the of the disease and 15 rapid response teams are working under the guidance of experts.

Culling operation started from Malaya, Mohonpur and Muslim para villages that were identified as epicentre of the disease. A target has been fixed to cull 25,000 birds in an area of five km radius comprising eight gram-panchayats.

Report received till Tuesday afternoon said, culling operation has failed to achieve much success as the animal resource development department workers could hardly cull 2,000 birds, mainly due to non co-operation from the villagers. Most of them are reluctant to part with their chickens.

A housewife of Muslim para, Monoroma Bibi said, "These are means of our livelihood and if culled what will we eat?" Another aged person of Malaya, Sudhan Das said, the compensation announced by the government is too inadequate compared to the market price.

(snip)

Apart from the chicks and ducks large number of crows also died and on Tuesday morning dead bodies of few foxes were also found in the nearby jungles. "We are trying to ascertain the reasons for these deaths and close watch is being kept on the behaviour of other birds and animals," he said.

(snip)

http://howrah.org/india_news/8...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 20:10:30 PM UTC

Thousands of poultry culled in bird flu hit Tripura

Agartala, April 9 (IANS) An estimated 21,000 poultry were culled in the past two days in Tripura as fresh reports of birds' deaths came in from various parts of the northeastern state, officials said Wednesday. "Authorities have started culling operations Tuesday and over 9,000 birds, mostly chickens, have been culled on the first day and about 12,000 on Wednesday," said U. Venkateswarlu, principal secretary in-charge of the state's Animal Resource Development Department (ARDD).

There were reports of fresh deaths of birds in Rajnagar in south Tripura and Bishalgarh in west Tripura Tuesday.

"Blood samples of the dead birds are being sent to the Bhopal-based High Security Animal Disease Laboratory for testing," the official said.

(snip)

http://www.thaindian.com/newsp...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Wed Apr 09, 2008 at 18:08:49 PM UTC

Gov't Report - Ministry of health

SITUATIONAL REPORT AS ON 8-4-2008 - NO HUMANS AFFECTED
10:44 IST

Tripura            

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Salema [Village: Mohanpur], district Dhalai of Tripura on 7.4.2008. On getting the information of unusual poultry deaths, Central Rapid Response Team from MOHFW has reached Tripura.

           MOHFW has supplied 500 Personal Protective Equipments, 200 N-95 masks, 5000 capsules of Tamiflu and 2 ventilators.

           Active house-to-house surveillance started in 0-3 Km area and a population of 1640 has been covered. No cases with fever/URI have been identified in the surveyed population.

West Bengal

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Ranaghat II [Village: Mandalpukur, Kalitala], Nadia District of West Bengal on 4th April 2008. Containment operations have been initiated.

Nadia

·         Active house-to-house surveillance has started in 0-3 Km area. A population of 63902 has been covered. Five cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         145 Animal Health Workers who are involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis

·         Adequate stock of Oseltamivir, personal protective equipments are available with the State/district authorities.

Jalpaiguri

·         In the earlier notified area of Jalpaiguri district active house-to-house surveillance is continuing in 0-3 Km area. A population of 29253 has been covered. 6 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         In 3-10 Km area, a population of 94640 has been covered.  103 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         74 cases of fever/URI have reported in the hospital. None of them had exposure to infected poultry. Three cases with fever/ URI are admitted in the hospital.

·         Adequate stock of Oseltamivir, personal protective equipments are available with the State/district authorities.

There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

The situation is being monitored.

http://pib.nic.in/release/rele...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 10, 2008 at 03:07:09 AM UTC

Gov't Report - Ministry of health

SITUATIONAL REPORT AS ON 9-4-2008 - NO HUMANS AFFECTED
10:48 IST

Tripura            

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Salema [Village: Mohanpur], district Dhalai of Tripura on 7.4.2008.  The Central Rapid Response Team from MOHFW is assisting the State authorities in containment operations.

           MOHFW has supplied 500 Personal Protective Equipments, 200 N-95 masks, 5000 capsules of Tamiflu and 2 ventilators.

           Active house-to-house surveillance in 0-3 Km area is continuing.  The health teams have covered a population of 1923 and there is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

West Bengal

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Ranaghat II [Village: Mandalpukur, Kalitala], Nadia District of West Bengal on 4th April, 2008.

Nadia

·         Active house-to-house surveillance in 0-3 Km area is continuing. A population of 156057 has been covered. Six cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         In the identified hospital, 21 cases have reported with fever/URI and none of them had history exposure to infected poultry.

·         184 Animal Health Workers who are involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis

Jalpaiguri

·         In the earlier notified area of Jalpaiguri district active house-to-house surveillance is continuing in 0-3 Km area. A population of 29253 has been covered. 4 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         In 3-10 Km area, a population of 99447 has been covered.  83 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         32 cases of fever/URI have reported in the hospital. None of them had exposure to infected poultry. One case with fever/ URI is admitted in the hospital.

·         186 Animal Health Workers who were involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

Adequate stock of Oseltamivir, personal protective equipments are available with the State/district authorities.

There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

The situation is being monitored.

http://pib.nic.in/release/rele...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 10, 2008 at 22:06:40 PM UTC

Ramadoss pulls up Eastern India states, fears bird flu in humans

Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss last night accused Eastern India of not doing enough to stop the Bird flu epidemic and apprehended human infection.

He thinks there are some human infections?

''India is also dissatisfied with the way Bangladesh is handling the disease and considering to raise the matter at the World Health Organization (WHO) meeting to be held at Geneva in June this year.

''It is not far when the risk of humans being infected by the disease will become inevitable. So I want that the Eastern Indian states should wake up and do something before a catastrophy hits them,'' he said

''It is not that the West Bengal and Tripura governments have not culled chickens, but the fact remains that their attitude has been lackadaisical and had no urgency in preventing the spread of the disease,'' he said.

The Union Health Minister was convinced that Bird flu had originated in Bangladesh and the Eastern Indian states were at fault in not stopping its import. ''I am personally going to take up the matter at the WHO meet at Geneva this June'' he said.

Theres more.......

http://news.webindia123.com/ne...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 10, 2008 at 22:14:44 PM UTC

Bangladesh poultry a possible source of bird flu

While migratory birds are, in all probability, the primary source of bird flu, in Tripura, illegal poultry sneaking into the state from Bangladesh could also be responsible for spreading the virus. The Foreign Secretary has summoned High Commissioner of Bangladesh for not sharing vital information regarding the virus and has also written to the Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka asking him to intervene.

.............

Bangladesh is badly affected by bird flu with 21of its 64 districts affected by the deadly H5N1 virus. While the Indian Government has been trying to convince Bangladesh to share the gene sequencing of the virus, Bangladesh has so far denied them the required information. The Foreign Secretary spoke to Bangladesh officials this week and the officials here are awaiting reply from their Bangladeshi counterparts. The officials say that though the border has been sealed, that's hardly a deterrent for illegal poultry trade.

Theres more........

http://www.indianexpress.com/s...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 10, 2008 at 22:19:28 PM UTC

Gov't Report - Ministry of health

SITUATIONAL REPORT AS ON 10-4-2008 - NO HUMANS AFFECTED
10:50 IST

Tripura            

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Salema [Village: Mohanpur], district Dhalai of Tripura on 7.4.2008.  The Central Rapid Response Team from MOHFW is assisting the State authorities in containment operations.

           MOHFW has supplied 500 Personal Protective Equipments, 200 N-95 masks, 5000 capsules of Tamiflu and 2 ventilators.

           Active house-to-house surveillance in 0-3 Km area is continuing.  The health teams have covered a population of 1923 and there is no suspect case of human avian influenza. In the identified hospital 21 cases with fever/URI have reported. None of them had exposure to infected poultry. 138 Animal Health Workers involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

West Bengal

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Ranaghat II [Village: Mandalpukur, Kalitala], Nadia District of West Bengal on 4th April, 2008.

Nadia

·         Active house-to-house surveillance in 0-3 Km area is continuing. A population of 166635 has been covered. 37 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         In the identified hospital, 128 cases have reported with fever/URI and none of them had history of exposure to infected poultry.

·         229 Animal Health Workers who are involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis

Jalpaiguri

·         In the earlier notified area of Jalpaiguri district active house-to-house surveillance is continuing in 0-3 Km area. A population of 29253 has been covered. 3 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         In 3-10 Km area, a population of 94059 has been covered.  81 cases of fever/URI have been identified in the community. None of them had exposure to infected poultry.

·         21 cases of fever/URI have reported in the hospital. None of them had exposure to infected poultry. One case with fever/ URI is admitted in the hospital.

·         152 Animal Health Workers who were involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

Adequate stock of Oseltamivir, personal protective equipments are available with the State/district authorities.

There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

The situation is being monitored.

http://pib.nic.in/release/rele...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Fri Apr 11, 2008 at 13:05:41 PM UTC

Public healthcare in serious decline: PC

India's public healthcare is in "serious decline" due to non-availability of medical and paramedical staff, diagnostic services and medicines, says a Planning Commission report.

The report said public institutions had played a dominant role in the Indian healthcare sector in the past in urban as well as rural areas. But they have been on a serious decline in the last two or three decades. Although there is a wide network of healthcare services, many don't have medical staff, it said. There are 3,910 community health centres (CHCs), 22,669 primary health centres (PHC) and 144,988 sub centres in the country.

The report said a shortfall of medical staff was found in the CHCs in March 2006. It said 59.4 percent of surgeons, 45 percent of obstetricians and gynaecologists, 61 percent of physicians and 53 percent of paediatricians were not in place in these centres. "Equally distressing is the fact that essential therapeutic drugs are not supplied in most public health institutions with the exception of some states.

It also noted that critical shortage of health personnel, inadequate incentives, poor working conditions, lack of transparency in posting of doctors in rural areas, absenteeism, long wait, inconvenient clinic hours, poor outreach, time of service, insensitivity to local needs, inadequate planning, management and monitoring of service are the other reasons for low turnout in government hospitals.

http://www.nagalandpost.com/Na...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Mon Apr 14, 2008 at 01:00:45 AM UTC

Gov't Report - Ministry of health

VIAN INFLUENZA IN WEST BENGAL AND TRIPURA SITUATIONAL REPORT AS ON 14-4-2008 - NO HUMANS AFFECTED
11:33 IST

West Bengal

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Ranaghat II [Village: Mandalpukur, Kalitala], Nadia District of West Bengal on 4th April, 2008.

Nadia

·         Active house-to-house surveillance is continuing. In the 0-3 km Zone the teams have covered a population of 1,68,288 and in the 3-10 km area, a population of 1,99,700 was covered.

·         No person with fever/URI were detected in the zones. There are no fever/URI cases detected or admitted in the identified hospitals.

·         There are adequate stocks of PPE and Oseltamivir with the State Health authorities.

Tripura [as on 12th April 2008]

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has notified outbreak of Avian Influenza in poultry in Block Salema [Village: Mohanpur], district Dhalai of Tripura on 7.4.2008.

·         The Central Rapid Response Team from MOHFW is assisting the State authorities in containment operations.

·         MOHFW has supplied 500 Personal Protective Equipments, 200 N-95 masks, 5000 capsules of Tamiflu and 2 ventilators.

·         Active house-to-house surveillance is continuing.  The health teams have covered a population of 11803 in the 0-3 km zone and a population of 24923 in the 3-10 km Zone.

·         A total of 17 cases of fever/URI were detected in the surveillance [4 in the 0-3 km area and 13 in the 3-10 km zone.] but none of them had history of exposure to infected poultry. There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

·         In the identified hospital with isolation facilities, 16 cases with fever/URI have reported. None of them had exposure to infected poultry. One person with fever/URI is admitted. There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

·         221 Animal Health Workers involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

·         IEC activities are being undertaken through pamphlets, miking etc.

http://pib.nic.in/release/rele...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 23:30:31 PM UTC

Interesting new twist in gov't reports

I notice that the reports have now added, "There is no suspect case of human avian influenza" after any statement reporting people with fever/URI.

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by: AlohaOR @ Wed Apr 16, 2008 at 03:51:24 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yea, do they eally believe they are fooling anyone? n/t

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 01:52:42 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I have an idea. Why don't some of us call technology help lines for problems

with our computers, and then when we get the techhie in India (to whom these jobs are now all outsourced), maybe we can ask them if they've heard anything about human cases of bird flu (or any other serious and/or mysterious flu like illness going on in the country.)

The man on the street angle.

Always have a plan B.

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by: maryinhawaii @ Mon Apr 21, 2008 at 04:58:02 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I did that

I had a DSL problem back in February when West Bengal was having large outbreaks.  From the girl's accent I could tell she was from India or that region.  I asked her what she thought of the bird flu situation, her reply indicated that she was barely aware there was a problem.

To calm the wife buy cases of chocolate, to calm the husband buy cases of booze, and to calm the children...... heck the booze and chocolate should work.

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by: Oremus @ Mon Apr 28, 2008 at 19:46:25 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Fever hits 2,000 in Malegaon

NASHIK: Over 1,000 people, including women and children, were admitted to government and private hospitals in the powerloom town of Malegaon in the district following complaints of fever, a senior official said on Wednesday.

Another 1,000 people are said to be affected too.

Malegaon Municipal Corporation Medical Officer Dr Hasonoddin Shaikh said that MMC health squad was fully geared up to provide treatment to the patients, who were admitted following complaints of "high temperature and joint pains".

"The condition of all the patients was stable," Shaikh added.

"We have collected blood samples of all the patients for examinations and report of it was awaited," he added.

http://www.dnaindia.com/report...

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Tue Apr 15, 2008 at 23:41:33 PM UTC

Bird flu outbreaks in West Bengal not contained - official

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Outbreaks of H5N1 bird flu in West Bengal, which shares a long border with Bangladesh, have not yet been contained, a senior health official in said on Wednesday.

"West Bengal is an area of concern because we have had outbreaks with some regularity, it is not fully under control yet," Health Secretary Naresh Dayal said in an interview.

Unlike outbreaks in commercial poultry farms in Maharashtra in 2006 and Manipur in 2007, which were more easily reined in, outbreaks in West Bengal involved backyard poultry and these were much harder to control, he said.

"They have not been able to completely depopulate (the infected areas) of birds," Dayal said, without giving details.

(snip - There's more.)

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Wed Apr 16, 2008 at 17:12:15 PM UTC

Gov't Report - Ministry of health

SITUATIONAL REPORT AS ON 15-4-2008 - NO HUMANS AFFECTED
11:26 IST

Tripura

Apart from notification of Avian Influenza in poultry on 7.4.2008 no further outbreak has been notified.

·         The Central Rapid Response Team from MOHFW is assisting the State authorities in containment operations.

·         Active house-to-house surveillance is continuing.  The health teams have covered a population of 11803 in the 0-3 km zone. Five persons with fever/URI have been detected and none of them had history of exposure to infected poultry.

·         There is no suspect case of human avian influenza.

·         In the identified hospital one case with fever/URI had reported. He had no exposure to infected poultry.

·         200 Animal Health Workers involved in containment operations are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

·         IEC activities are continuing.

West Bengal

Nadia [outbreak notified on 4.4.2008]

·         Active house-to-house surveillance is continuing. In the 0-3 km Zone the teams have covered a population of 1,66,889 and in the 3-10 km area, a population of 1,28,901 was covered. A total of 3 cases with fever/URI had been detected and none of them had history exposure to infected poultry.

·         There are no fever/URI cases detected or admitted in the identified hospitals.

·         240 Animal health workers who are involved containment operation are under medical supervision and chemoprophylaxis.

·         There are adequate stocks of PPE and Oseltamivir with the State Health authorities.

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 01:52:06 AM UTC

Bangladesh flu a threat to Bengal`s poultry plans, says minister

The West Bengal government has cautioned against fresh bird flu outbreak in the state, if the disease continues to spread in Bangladesh unchecked.

In this regard, India has also requested Bangladesh to take urgent steps to contain the disease, said Anisur Rahaman, animal resources development minister of West Bengal at an interactive session organised by the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Kolkata on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the representatives of the state health and animal resources departments would hold a meeting with Central government officials on April 18 in Kolkata to discuss the issue, informed the minister.

"While after 9th April 2008, no new cases of bird flu have been detected in the state and the situation is under control, the disease may erupt again if not checked in Bangladesh, which is not taking enough measures to curb it. A formal letter has been sent by our high commission to the Bangladesh government in the regard," the minister said.

Quoting Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, Rahaman said, bird flu has speared to 47 districts in Bangladesh

Earlier, the minister had said that smuggled poultry from Bangladesh could be one of the reasons of bird flu in West Bengal. With a view to bring the poultry sector back on track, the state has taken up the task of distributing free chickens to nearly 25 lakh self help groups in the state this year.

(snip)

http://www.business-standard.c...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 20:00:50 PM UTC

In other words, it has been almost a week since a new case was reported.

"While after 9th April 2008, no new cases of bird flu have been detected in the state and the situation is under control, the disease may erupt again if not checked in Bangladesh, which is not taking enough measures to curb it.

Yes, indeed.  It must be under control. I think rumors of H5N1's eradication in West Bengal may be a bit premature, and I don't believe Bangladesh is necessarily a proper scapegoat in this instance.  I'm not convinced culling has been as complete as reported, and if the ARD continues its practice of handing out free poultry to self-help groups before the 90 day ban has expired, I don't see how he can possibly blame Bangladesh for new outbreaks with a straight face.

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 20:07:09 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Yes, looks like posturing.....

I don't think India will take any responsibility until they lose control of the media there.  Even then, the will probably just go quiet.

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Fri Apr 18, 2008 at 00:14:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

West Bengal still struggles with bird flu

West Bengal has been fighting the bird flu for three months now. But the epidemic shows no signs of going away, erupting in new places every few weeks.

Now, Union Health Minister Ramadoss has said that if the outbreak is not controlled properly, India could see its first human case.

''I am afraid the way the bird flu is being handled in Bengal is not enough to stamp it out, I think we may see the first human case soon,'' said Dr Anbumani Ramadoss, Union Health Minister.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation or FAO also shares the same fear as the affected area has a high density of people and poultry.

After a visit in mid-February, FAO officials had warned that the disease would strike back.

In districts like Nadia, where the outbreak was first reported, culling was patchy with many ducks and chicken left untouched. And the repeat outbreaks in the same area show that the clean-up had not been done properly.

But the West Bengal government has said that it worked to protocol, culling over 3.9 million chicken and ducks since January.

''We have met every requirement,'' said Anis-ur-Rahman, Minister of Animal Husbandry, West Bengal.

But a worried Centre is now planning to intensify the response to the outbreak. In order to do so a meeting is scheduled at the end of this month.

http://www.ndtv.com/convergenc...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Fri Apr 18, 2008 at 21:48:33 PM UTC

Bengal comes in for flak over bird flu

THE LEFT Front government in West Bengal has come in for flak for its failure to check the bird flu menace in the state over the last three months. The union health minister Dr Anbumani Ramados has expressed fears that if the state government continues to be lackadaisical about dealing with the malaise, the state may see the first human case of the deadly virus.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has expressed similar fears because the affected areas have a high density of humans and poultry. Incidentally, FAO officials had cautioned after a visit in mid-February that avian flu would occur again.

The belief that the West Bengal government has been lackadaisical in dealing with bird flu has gained ground because it has taken three months after the avian flu outbreak for the government to sit up and decide on forming a committee to find out the source of the virus. The committee will have four members.

One reason for bird flu resurfacing in the state has to do with culling operations being handled badly. Many birds were not slaughtered in the first phase of the virus outbreak. But the state's animal husbandry department claims that it had met its culling target of over four million birds. However, the proposed committee would look into whether culling was done properly and whether proper training was imparted to prevent bird flu from spreading, minister for animal husbandry, Anisur Rahman told reporters during the weekend.  

http://www.merinews.com/catFul...
 

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Sun Apr 20, 2008 at 14:32:16 PM UTC

Here's a link to a press release from the West Bengal government.

It's showing some renewed culling activity in Murshidabad as of 4-17-2008.  Apparently, a little over 100 chickens were culled on the 16th and more than 500 were culled on the 17th.  

http://www.wbgov.com/e-gov/adm...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Sun Apr 20, 2008 at 15:24:40 PM UTC

India to cull as bf resurfaces

India to cull as bf resurfaces
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Bird flu resurfaces; Indian authorities prepare for cull

Reuters
http://www.chinapost.com.tw/ar...

GUWAHATI, India -- Authorities in a remote northeastern state of India prepared to cull thousands of chickens after a fresh outbreak of bird flu in poultry was detected on Tuesday, officials said. More than 25,000 chickens and ducks have already been slaughtered in Tripura state this month after eight villages were hit by the H5N1 strain.
On Tuesday, officials said bird flu had spread to a new area. "Bird flu has been confirmed for the second time in Tripura," Kartick Debbarma, a senior animal resources official said in Agartala, Tripura's capital. "It is the H5N1 strain."

United we stand: Divided we fall
www.flunewsnetwork.com

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by: cottontop @ Wed Apr 23, 2008 at 10:01:32 AM UTC

India blames Bangladesh as bird flu spreads

GUWAHATI, India, April 24 (Reuters) - Authorities battling an outbreak of bird flu in poultry in India's remote northeast blamed Bangladesh for the spread on Thursday, but many experts said India was not doing enough to contain the virus.

More than 25,000 chickens and ducks have already been slaughtered in Tripura state this month after it was hit by the H5N1 strain.

On Thursday, authorities chose to blame neighbouring Bangladesh after they received reports of new bird flu cases in the state. "Unless bird flu is contained completely in Bangladesh, the virus will keep spreading in Tripura," U. Venkatateswarlu, (Snip) The remote northeastern state borders Bangladesh, where more than half the country's districts have been affected by the virus.

"Our main problem in controlling the situation is because of close proximity with Bangladesh," Venkatateswarlu added.
But many people disagreed.

For the past two days, while hundreds of birds mysteriously died in remote villages, complaints from people were largely ignored by state authorities, some officials and animal experts said.
(Snip)
"We had warned the Tripura government about bird flu and we told them the reason for the spread of bird flu is because of bad farm practices," he said by telephone. (Snip)

"The government is going too slow and blaming Bangladesh will not solve this problem as it is time we should take strong action," said Ratan Lal Nath, a lawmaker from Mohanpur town, worst-hit by the recent outbreak. Authorities said they would cull at least 15,000 more birds to control the virus in two new areas.

Most people had also stopped buying chickens in markets and traders said they were staring at huge losses. Continued: http://africa.reuters.com/comm...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Thu Apr 24, 2008 at 11:12:24 AM UTC

Fresh bird flu outbreak in Tripura, culling begins

Bird flu virus was detected in blood samples of dead birds from Nadilag village of Bishalgarh (Snip) Culling would begin at Nadilag after it was notified by the Central government, the sources said.

Meanwhile, 60,000 birds would be culled from on Thursday in eight gram panchayat areas, which fall within the 5-km radius of Mohanpur in Sadar subdivision of West Tripura district, from where samples had tested positive on April 21, (Snip) Culling would continue in the area for the next five days, he said.

A red alert has been sounded and import of poultry and eggs from outside the state, including neighbouring Bangladesh has been banned. Reports said a total of 43 districts in Bangladesh were affected by bird flu.
(Snip)
Five checkposts were set up at Sidhai, Mantola, Khowa Chowmuhuni, Tarapur and Bijaynagar School Chowmuhuni to ban movement of birds to and from the affected panchayats and Bangladesh, the sources said. http://sify.com/news/fullstory...

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. --Unknown

     

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by: Carol@SC @ Thu Apr 24, 2008 at 11:21:16 AM UTC

Double blow to Tripura widow in culling aftermath

Agartala, April 29: Dalura Begum had barely got over the grief of losing her prized ducks and chickens when fate dealt her another blow. The 50-year-old widow could only stare at the 500-rupee note in her hand in disbelief when the shopkeeper in Bishalgarh market told her it was a fake.

"But it can't be," Dalura protested, "It was given by the culling party this morning after they slaughtered my poultry."

It was the second day of tension-ridden culling in five gram panchayats of Bishalgarh subdivision of Tripura when a culling party arrived at Dalura's hut in Nadilag village on the bank of the Vijay. The village borders Bangladesh.

"They culled seven of my poultry chickens, three ducks and a pair of desi chickens, put the carcasses in a sack and gave me Rs 590 as compensation," said Dalura.

The mother of four cried the whole morning. But her tears gave way to anger in the evening when the shopkeeper refused to accept the Rs 500 note. Ever since her husband died six years ago, Dalura has been bringing up her four children in immense hardship, growing vegetables on a small patch of land, catching fish from the river with the help of her eldest son Salim and working as a labourer.

Dalura met the officer-in-charge of Bishalgarh police station, Parthasarathi Paul, to file a complaint about the fake currency but was advised instead to look for the culling party and demand replacement. "The officer said if I filed a formal complaint, matters would be complicated and it would be difficult to prove it in court," said Dalura.

She found the culling party in Netaji Nagar village this morning but the officials refused to take the note back. "Now I have brought the matter to the notice of our village chief Ali Hossain and have to wait for him to do something," she said in a resigned voice.

(snip)

Altogether 5,491 birds were culled yesterday in Bishalgarh and compensation of Rs 2,28,790 paid in the five panchayats. The Sipahijala wildlife sanctuary authorities closed the zoo to visitors yesterday after villagers demanded culling of birds inside the preserve.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/...

(Comment - Kind of makes one wonder how much of the compensation will turn out to be bogus bills.  People are already angry about losing their birds.  At the very least this woman should be able to depend on her minimal compensation being legitimate.  This is not the way to build trust with a community.  I have a feeling there is much more to this story. )  

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Wed Apr 30, 2008 at 19:14:04 PM UTC

Could the government be more corrupt????

this will only make things even worse of there.

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by: indypokerboy41 @ Thu May 01, 2008 at 01:20:42 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Who could blame them if they hide their birds now? n/t

Always have a plan B.

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by: maryinhawaii @ Sun May 04, 2008 at 04:04:52 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Dr. Suman Dey's blog: Best description of Post Mortem examination for bird flu in poultry to date!

I'll just post the link, because the entire entry is worth reading.  Dr. Suman Dey identified the first cases of bird flu in Margram, West Bengal back in January.  I just found his blog entry today.  

http://deysuman.blogspot.com/

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Fri May 02, 2008 at 01:09:04 AM UTC

Bird flu spreading in Tripura

Bird flu is spreading to fresh areas in Tripura even as culling operations are continuing in the state, officials said Monday.

More than 45,000 poultry have been culled in the Mohanpur and Bisalgarh areas since the operation began last week.

'We are getting reports of birds' death in a large number of places from across the state and accordingly samples of blood and dead birds are being sent to the High Security Animal Diseases Laboratory (HSADL) in Bhopal for testing,' said Ashish Roy Burman, director of the Animal Resource Development (ARD) department.

He said over 3,000 birds had died in Ranir Bazar areas of west Tripura in the past few days.

(snip)

http://www.indiaenews.com/busi...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Fri May 02, 2008 at 01:17:35 AM UTC

Malaria claims 22 lives in Tripura

Sat, May 3 10:05 PM

Bilaihum, May 03 (ANI): Malaria continues to take a heavy toll in Tripura with reports of at least 30 tribals falling prey to high fever and nine of them succumbing to the disease. Over the past few days, several cases of malaria have been reported from the Bilaihum village, 75 km east of capital Agartala.

Block development officer of the area, Jayanta Debbarma confirmed that all 22 deaths were due to malaria and water borne diseases.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/ani/2...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Sun May 04, 2008 at 13:51:46 PM UTC

Three more die from Malaria in Tripura, including a 4 y.o. child.

The National Institute of Health and Family Welfare is visiting the area.  Health camps have been organized.  The victims are suffering from high fever.

http://www.tripurainfo.com/cgi...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Thu May 08, 2008 at 18:35:38 PM UTC

Poultry deaths numbering more than 200 in 24 hours in Tripura.

No samples have been taken as yet.  ARD officials claim they have not been informed of any suspicious poultry deaths at this time.

Here's the photographic evidence.
http://www.tripurainfo.com/cgi...

(More at link.) - http://www.tripurainfo.com/cgi...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Fri May 09, 2008 at 08:37:22 AM UTC

Linked website doesn't allow copying, but here's an abstract for research purposes

Over 200 chicks and ducks were reported to have died in 24 hours in Nanditilla near Camperbazar.  The villagers fear bird flu, but neither the administration nor the ARDD department took any samples from dead birds so far.

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by: AlohaOR @ Sun May 11, 2008 at 22:28:47 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

flubergasted: I couldn't get your two tripurainfo links to open, but

the yahoo article above them had an interesting comment worth exploring:

Block development officer of the area, Jayanta Debbarma confirmed that all 22 deaths were due to malaria and water borne diseases.

So, coincidentally with an as yet undiagnosed illness killing a bunch of poultry, we have an epidemic of mosquito borne malaria and water borne diseases (which would have no relationship to the poultry deaths.) But this article says the diagnosis of malaria was "confirmed" on the authority of the local "block development officer." What is not clear is, were the diagnoses of this disease confirmed by medical laboratory testing of the victims, which this block development officer is just passing on to the media? Or did he or someone else in charge decide to proclaim that it was malaria based on symptomology alone?

I have to admit I know nothing about Tripura, whether it is a modern industrialized country with a great health care system, or a backwater of poor villages and few medical facilities. But if it's the latter, then this "malaria" outbreak occuring coincidentally with dying poultry in the area becomes more suspicious.

Always have a plan B.

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by: maryinhawaii @ Mon May 26, 2008 at 03:48:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

India Under 'Bird Flu' Virus Turmoil

(Posted on May 10 News Reports by Carol@SC)

http://www.topnews.in/india-un...

Anisur Rehaman, West Bengal's Animal Resources Development (ARD) Minister confirmed a new H5N1 virus outbreak in the Darjeeling region of eastern India.

The bird flu attack in Darjeeling district brings the total number of West Bengal regions that have been hit by the virus in the existing year to 15.

The minister confirmed that the blood samples of dead birds picked up from the Himalayan foothills of West Bengal were infected with the highly pathogenic bird flu virus. He also said that culling would begin shortly in the region.
(Snip)
Initially, the disease was noticed in Bangladesh during February last year (2007) near Dhaka. It was almost inactive by late 2007 but made a forceful comeback in January 2008.
(Snip)
However, no human cases have been reported in India up till now. http://www.topnews.in/india-un...  

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by: AlohaOR @ Sun May 11, 2008 at 19:51:19 PM UTC

Map of West Bengal districts

Source: maps ofindia.com

Poultry deaths in Darjeeling were reported as early as January (link).

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by: AlohaOR @ Sun May 11, 2008 at 20:08:39 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Bird flu in Darjeeling, culling begins

(Posted by Kobie on May 10 News Reports)

http://www.business-standard.c...

Culling of birds began in 42 villages in the mountain foothill areas of Darjeeling district today where avian flu has been detected. District Magistrate Rajesh Pandey said 283 birds were reported to have died in and around Sukna area between April 27 and May 4 following which samples were sent to High Security Diseases Laboratory in Bhopal, which confirmed the outbreak of avian flu.

The report reached the district authorities on May 8 and culling of birds began this morning, he said.      Pandey said 25 culling teams spread to 41 villages - 10 at Sukna in Kurseong sub-division and 31 others in adjacent Matigara, Atharokhai and upper and lower Bagdogra gram panchayat area - where 18,000 chicken were to be killed.  

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by: AlohaOR @ Sun May 11, 2008 at 20:13:37 PM UTC

Bangladesh - Toddler brings nation into bird flu age

http://www.news.com.au/heralds...

A 16-MONTH-old boy has been confirmed as Bangladesh's first human case of the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, a senior health ministry official said today.

"We got the confirmation yesterday from the CDC (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) yesterday," said Mahmudur Rahman.

The boy from a slum in the capital Dhaka "has survived. He has been quarantined and his condition has improved," Rahman said.

"Although there is no farm in the neighbourhood we suspect that he got the illness after his family bought chickens from a farm," he said.

http://www.javno.com/en/world/...

Bangladesh said on Thursday a child infected with bird flu, the country's first reported human case of the virus, had recovered.
"The child was found infected by H5N1 but after treatment he has recovered and is now doing well," Mahmudur Rahman, director of the Dhaka-based Institute of Epidemiology and Disease Control and Research, told Reuters.

He said the case was detected recently during a routine check-up , but did not give details.

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by: UK - Bird @ Thu May 22, 2008 at 14:01:02 PM UTC

Bangladesh says first human case of H5N1 bird flu has been found

http://www.pr-inside.com/bangl...

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) - Bangladesh's Health Ministry says the nation's first human case of H5N1 strain of bird flu infection has been detected.
A health ministry statement says a child was infected by the virus in January .

The statement released by the Directorate General of Health Services on Thursday did not give the child's name, age, or other details about the case.
The child is recovering after treatment. The statement said the case was diagnosed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Bangladesh in recent months have culled hundreds of thousands of birds after the virus was detected last year.

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by: UK - Bird @ Thu May 22, 2008 at 14:03:02 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

WHO confirms Bangladesh case (finally)

Avian influenza - situation in Bangladesh

28 May 2008 -- The Ministry of Health, Bangladesh has confirmed its first case of human infection with H5N1 avian influenza. The case was identified retrospectively as part of seasonal surveillance activities run by the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDRB).

The case is a 16-month-old male from Komalapur, Dhaka. He developed symptoms on 27th January 2008 and subsequently recovered. The case was confirmed as being infected with A(H5N1) by the WHO H5 Reference Laboratory, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The case was exposed to live and slaughtered chickens at his home. Specimens have been collected from his family members and neighbours. All remain healthy to date.

http://www.who.int/csr/don/200...

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by: AlohaOR @ Wed May 28, 2008 at 15:10:36 PM UTC

BIRD FLU: More lethal than 10 Hydrogen bombs

68 vets and para vets trained in control, containment ops

http://www.greaterkashmir.com/...

(From Kashmir)

Mattan May 29: Avian Influenza, another name for bird flu is fundamentally a disease of birds caused by a variety of strains of influenza viruses that have adapted to a specific host, particularly in water fowl. The H5N1 strain of influenza - often referred to as bird flu - is first known to have jumped from chickens to humans in 1997. (snip) Experts fear the nature of the disease could be more lethal than ten hydrogen bombs after causing a pandemic. (snip)

"Given the potential of the disease to affect several species of animals and man, it has become necessary for the veterinary and medical scientists to keep a constant vigil over the disease to prevent a pandemic," said Ravi Thusoo, Secretary to Government, Animal Husbandry Department. Thusoo was addressing the valedictory function of the World Bank sponsored advanced training for veterinary workforce of district Islamabad in the control and containment of Avian Influenza. "The dreaded disease is to be tackled like a disaster and therefore we need to be prepared to meet any eventuality."

Earlier on Tuesday, Dr Bhupinder Singh Director, Animal Husbandry, Kashmir formally launched the training programme in which 68 vets and Para vets participated. (snip)

The participants were imparted trainings in surveillance operations, stamping out of the disease in infected flocks including organized farms and backyard poultry system, disinfection of farm houses, feed godowns, marketplaces etc. They were also trained in mass vaccination operations in surveillance zones in the eventualities like outbreak of the disease.  Emphasis was laid on the collection of sera samples, morbid materials, donning of special dresses in culling operations, disposing off infected materials, disinfection of equipments etc. (continued)

---

The story included the following cartoon:

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by: AlohaOR @ Mon Jun 02, 2008 at 12:51:25 PM UTC

Text of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's speech

to Indian Foreign Service (IFS) probationers

June 11, 2008

http://www.hindustantimes.com/...

(snip)  In addition to the liberalization of trade and financial services, we are today faced with new challenges. There are environmental challenges. There is the growing concern of global warming. There is a growing concern about pandemics. Disease today knows no national barriers. Avian flu can travel from one country to another and this is yet another aspect of growing inter-dependence of nations. There are problems which no nation acting alone can solve and therefore we need regional cooperation, we need multilateral cooperation to deal with this new challenges. (snip)

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by: AlohaOR @ Wed Jun 11, 2008 at 15:43:20 PM UTC

New virus strain behind child deaths suspected (No. Dinajpur, West Bengal)

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

KOLKATA, June 22: At a time when the state health department is groping in the dark about the reason behind the deaths of 13 children over a span of six days at Karandighi in North Dinajpur, an experts' team from the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases (NICED) and the city-based virus unit of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) suspected a new strain of virus has hit the area.
"We have tried to find out the exact cause behind the deaths of the children. But the symptoms suggest that the disease is neither measles nor Japanese Encephalitis, which were primarily suspected to be the cause of deaths. It is probably a new strain of virus, which can be confirmed only after detailed test of viscera samples at the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune," said an expert who visited the area. (snip)

Dr MK Bhattacharya, additional director of NICED and ICMR's city-based virus unit, said: "Convulsion is the main symptom of the disease. And the patient is dying within a short span of time. We have collected one sample which will be sent to NIV soon. It appears that the disease is caused by a new strain of virus. It could be confirmed by the NIV after detailed examination of the sample."

"So far, it can be said that as the victims had no record of high temperature or rashes, it can't be measles. Similarly, as only children between the age group of 1-6 years are falling victim to the disease, it can't be Japanese Encephalitis or Nipah virus. All these suggest it is perhaps a new strain of virus, which is yet to be diagnosed," he added.

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by: AlohaOR @ Tue Jun 24, 2008 at 15:55:39 PM UTC

Unknown fever kills more

RAIGANJ, June 24: The death toll from an unknown fever in North Dinajpur district rose with the death of 3-year-old Rina Parvin of Rudel village, Karandighi block last night. According to the health department, the death toll from the unknown disease has now reached 15 although unofficial records claim 17 children have died in the past 10 days in different villages from the disease.

Tension prevails at Bodo Burihan, Chot Burihan, Murhel, Jagia, Madhya Kachna, Gopalpur, Gayeshpur, Rudel and Domahan villages in Karandighi block as district health authorities have not been able to detect the origin of the disease till now. This is depriving the victims from receiving proper treatment. Although teams from the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases in Kolkata and School of Tropical Medicine in Kolkata visited the region and collected samples from the affected children, but the disease continues to remain unidentified. Another team from the National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Pune is expected to visit the affected villages tomorrow for the detection of the disease. (continued)

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by: AlohaOR @ Wed Jun 25, 2008 at 01:27:11 AM UTC

Link to article

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

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by: AlohaOR @ Thu Jun 26, 2008 at 18:31:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Unknown fever toll increases

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

RAIGANJ, June 25: Another child died from the unknown disease in North Dinajpur district today even as experts from the National Institute of Virology, visited the fever affected villages in Karandighi, North Dinajpur district and collected blood samples from bats and pigs.

A six-year-old boy Muhammad Naseem succumbed to the illness he contracted on 24 June. The child was a resident of Chhoto Burhan, a village in Karandighi, North Dinajpur. The death takes the toll to 18 from the unknown disease in the area.

A five-member team guided by a scientist Dr B Dandale met the affected children in Karandighi hospital and collected serum samples from them today. Later the team visited the affected villages and collected blood sample from pigs and bats.The deputy chief medical officer of North Dinajpur Dr Manikanchan Saha said: "More samples from bats would be collected tonight."

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by: AlohaOR @ Thu Jun 26, 2008 at 18:29:28 PM UTC

Thanks for your hard work, AlohaOR.

I wish the article had included more symptoms than a generic fever.

"I am opposed to any form of tyranny over the mind of man."  Thomas Jefferson

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by: History Lover @ Thu Jun 26, 2008 at 20:54:35 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Child deaths: Panic grips parents, kids shifted elsewhere

RAIGANJ, June 30: With the death of 19 children in different villages of Karandighi block in North Dinajpur district, parents are now sending off their children elsewhere for safety sake. The origin of the disease remains unknown and the district health authorities have not been able to do anything about it.

The first of the child deaths occurred on 14 June at Rasakhoa village. Since then, 18 children aged between 1 and 7 have died in different villages of Karandighi block. Teams of specialist doctors from the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri, School of Tropical Medicine in Kolkata, National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases in Kolkata, National Institute of Virology Department in Pune and National Institute of Communicable Diseases in New Delhi visited the affected villages over the past few days but the origin of the disease remains untraced.

Fearing that it must be infectious, parents have in the meantime, started shifting their children to the adjoining districts for their well being. (Continued here)

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by: AlohaOR @ Fri Jul 04, 2008 at 01:09:53 AM UTC

More public health problems in West Bengal (not bird flu)

Leprosy stages a comeback in Bengal

http://www.topnews.in/leprosy-...

Kolkata, July 3 : There has been a sudden spurt in the number of leprosy cases in West Bengal despite the Left Front government's tall claim about a complete eradication of the disease.

Within the span of a year, the number of new leprosy patients has reached the incredible figure of 11,993, which includes over a thousand children. Deformation of limbs, which characterises the disease, is quite marked among a little over one thousand patients.

The concerned districts include Purulia, West Midnapore, Bankura, North and South Dinajpur, Birbhum, Burdwan and Malda.

Of these, tribal-infested Purulia, Bankura and West Midnapore districts are the worst-affected. (snip)

Former Director of leprosy Shib Prasad Banerjee said, "We can claim eradication of the disease if the number of patients is limited to one per ten thousand. Now it is more than one. In Purulia the ratio is 3.3 persons per ten thousand people."  

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by: AlohaOR @ Sat Jul 05, 2008 at 00:22:48 AM UTC

Follow up on Karandighi viral illnesses

Posted on Not Bird Flu But Close by: Okieman @ Tue Jul 08, 2008 at 14:03:42 PM PDT

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

'Chikungunya', the reason behind mysterious child deaths

RAIGANJ, July 8: Experts from the School of Tropical Medicine in Kolkata have found chikungunya anti-body in the blood samples collected from four of the 17 children who died recently in the Karandighi block of North Dinajpur district recently. The experts have also detected encephalitis anti-body in the blood sample of a family member of one of the victims.

Seventeen children succumbed to the unknown disease at Choto Burihan, Bado Burihan, Rasakhoa, Gopalpur, Gayeshpur and Rudel villages in Karandighi block last month and now the experts suspect the disease either as chikungunya or encephalitis. (snip)

According to district Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr Dipak Kumar Bhowmick, the experts from the School of Tropical Medicine in Kolkata has not confirmed the disease as either chikungunya or encephalitis. "The experts have suspected these diseases after antibodies were detected in the samples collected from the family members of some of the victims," he said.

"Specialists of the National Institute of Communicable Diseases in New Delhi recently collected samples of the affected children along with water samples but have not been able to come to any conclusion about the origin of the disease."  The doctors, however,said that treatment of the victims could not be initiated since the origin of the disease remains unknown.

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by: AlohaOR @ Wed Jul 09, 2008 at 00:24:43 AM UTC

Viral Fever, No lessons learned

http://www.thestatesman.net/pa...

Statesman News Service

KOLKATA, July 17: Though virus-borne diseases like dengue and chikungunya had plagued the city over the past few years, Kolkata Municipal Corporation, it seems, is yet to learn from its previous failures. This was evident when it came to light that the KMC is yet to start a proper surveillance on diseases like dengue and chikungunya though viral fever has already gripped the city.

Experts claim that though the virus which is circulating in the city these days is a common type of influenza virus, a proper surveillance is required to prevent dengue or chikungunya virus from spreading rampantly in Kolkata. (snip)

However, KMC officials said it was not their job to keep a tab on dengue and chikungunya. "The state health department usually informs us of the diseases. But we are carrying out awareness campaigns among city dwellers to keep dengue and chikungunya away from the city. We are requesting people to visit our malaria clinics to get their blood examined if one suffers from a fever," said Dr Deb Dwaipayan Chatterjee, the CMHO, KMC.

But the state health department made it clear that it is the duty of the KMC to keep a surveillance on dengue and chikungunya. "The KMC keeps a tab on these virus-borne diseases under a Central government project known as Integrated Disease Surveillance Project. The KMC is supposed to send us a copy of the report regularly. It is yet to hold a meeting with us in this regard this year," said an official of the state health department.

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by: AlohaOR @ Fri Jul 18, 2008 at 01:55:34 AM UTC

toranto kiled at least 65 people on sunday .2005..

A tornado killed at least 65 people in northern Bangladesh on Sunday March 20, 2005. This tornado hit Sadullahpur and Sudarganj .that's not goods for Bangladesh people.

bob martin

Addiction Recovery North Carolina

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by: bobmartin @ Mon Jul 21, 2008 at 06:58:17 AM UTC

Thanks for the update, bobmartin, but...

That news is over 3 years old.

That said, welcome to the FluWiki Forum. Now, about your tag-line...

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by: Bronco Bill @ Mon Jul 21, 2008 at 09:51:42 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Article about misdiagnoses in India

http://www.dnaindia.com/report...

'Blame it on your neighbourhood doc'

Your family physician's, or the nearby general practitioner's, inexperience could be as deadly as any life-threatening disease. A recent study by a BMC panel of experts, which works to control malaria and looks into reasons causing malaria deaths in Mumbai, has come across some very disturbing figures. The Malaria Death Committee of BMC has found that of the 122 confirmed deaths caused by malaria in 2007, 68 happened because of wrong or late diagnosis by the treating general practitioners (GP).

"It means almost 60% of the malaria deaths last year could have been averted with timely treatment," said Dr Kishor Hargouli, assistant health officer, surveillance, BMC. (snip)

Dr Jairaj Thanekar, executive health officer of BMC, said that a majority of general physicians had a tendency to dismiss most fever cases as viral attacks. "Very rarely do they prescribe dengue or malaria test," he said.  (continued)
--------------
Editorial comment:  If the doctors aren't even testing for dengue or malaria, which are well-known, endemic diseases in the country, it's no wonder that no human H5N1 cases have been found in India.

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by: AlohaOR @ Tue Jul 22, 2008 at 16:06:13 PM UTC

India:Mystery virus kills 160

Pawan Dixit, Hindustan Times
Email Author
Kanpur Dehat, August 25, 2008
First Published: 00:17 IST(25/8/2008)
Last Updated: 00:19 IST(25/8/2008)
Mystery virus kills 160

Rural Kanpur is fighting its most frightening scourge - a mystery disease that has left a long line of bodies in its trail and doesn't seem anywhere finished.

What started from one village two weeks ago has now spread to 350 and has so far claimed 160 lives. Thousands more are bed-ridden. On an average, 15 to 20 people have been dying every day; Saturday saw the highest toll in a day: 24.

The district's health department is somewhat confused about the nature of the disease that has struck. At the beginning, the diagnosis was viral fever. Then doctors concluded that it was falciparum malaria. But after two weeks, they have ruled out both but still don't have an exact answer.

"We really don't know what exactly it is; we are depending on the finding of a team of specialists from New Delhi," said Dr RC Agarwal, the district's new chief medical officer.

Specialists from the Infectious Disease and Surveillance Programme, New Delhi, have collected the blood samples of a few patients. The team will make its findings known in a few days.

But the fear of the unknown has resulted in a mass exodus of villagers. Pulandar and Dhar villages under Malasa block are
the worst affected. About 1,000 people in these two villages alone are battling the disease. Dhar has taken the maximum number of casualties. The village has lost about 30 people but only one doctor has visited it so far. That was 15 days ago.

Kuldeep Singh and Ram Avtaar of Dhar break down screaming: "A lot of people can still be saved; we need doctors." Rajesh (38) of Pulandar village says: "Everyone here is waiting for doctors to come and examine people; but they aren't coming and we are counting our dead." On Sunday morning, the mystery fever claimed Tilak Singh (35) and his nephew Vikas Singh (11).

Dhar still remains a perfect picture of neglect and apathy. Heaps of garbage continue to be littered all over. Houses are surrounded by stinking filth and roads are waterlogged - perfect breeding grounds for diseases like malaria. The village's secondary school has been shut down for an indefinite period. Children would wade through knee-deep water to reach the school.

Santosh Prajapati is struggling to cope with looking after eight family members who have been afflicted by the disease. He has hired a tractor to shift them to a hospital in Kanpur city. "I have borrowed money from my relatives... if they remain here they will die," he says.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/...
© Copyright 2007 Hindustan Times

http://www.hindustantimes.com/...

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by: unpathedhaunts @ Tue Aug 26, 2008 at 22:54:35 PM UTC

Whoops! n/t

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Tue Aug 26, 2008 at 22:59:47 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Mystery virus kills 160

Thanks to Unpathedhaunts for find this story.  Kanpur is in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Rural Kanpur is fighting its most frightening scourge - a mystery disease that has left a long line of bodies in its trail and doesn't seem anywhere finished.

What started from one village two weeks ago has now spread to 350 and has so far claimed 160 lives. Thousands more are bed-ridden. On an average, 15 to 20 people have been dying every day; Saturday saw the highest toll in a day: 24.

The district's health department is somewhat confused about the nature of the disease that has struck. At the beginning, the diagnosis was viral fever. Then doctors concluded that it was falciparum malaria. But after two weeks, they have ruled out both but still don't have an exact answer.

"We really don't know what exactly it is; we are depending on the finding of a team of specialists from New Delhi," said Dr RC Agarwal, the district's new chief medical officer.

Specialists from the Infectious Disease and Surveillance Programme, New Delhi, have collected the blood samples of a few patients. The team will make its findings known in a few days.

But the fear of the unknown has resulted in a mass exodus of villagers. Pulandar and Dhar villages under Malasa block are
the worst affected. About 1,000 people in these two villages alone are battling the disease. Dhar has taken the maximum number of casualties. The village has lost about 30 people but only one doctor has visited it so far. That was 15 days ago.

(snip)

http://www.hindustantimes.com/...

Millions for defense, but not one cent for tribute!

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by: flubergasted @ Tue Aug 26, 2008 at 22:55:04 PM UTC

New India, Bangladesh diary

Can be found here

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by: Bronco Bill @ Thu Aug 28, 2008 at 01:48:39 AM UTC