ARD reduces culling figure post survey in Malda

Statesman News Service

MALDA, March 24: Mr NK Shit, deputy director, ARD has finally reduced the figure of poultry for culling from 45,000 to 23,500 in the English Bazaar Municipality and its adjoining areas within a radius of 3 km from the state-run poultry farm where fresh Bird Flu virus was detected recently.This decision to reduce the targeted figure has raised another debate regarding the fact and figures prepared by the administration for culling operation. It was alleged that many private poultry farms had shifted poultry to unaffected zones to avoid culling. The Malda administration has carried out culling operation today after extending it for two more days from Saturday, the dead line set up by the state authorities, to achieve the target. The decision to extend the culling for two more days was taken when cu-lling operation was stalled due to Holi festivities. The administration has called an all political party meeting this evening to begin the mopping up from tomorrow. The additional district magistrate (general) Mr PC Shit said: “Nearly 19,600 birds had been culled till yesterday. The rest of birds will be culled today and during the mopping drive”. Mr NK Shit, the deputy director of animal resources development department in Malda, argued that initially the poultry population was roughly estimated as 45,000 based on the 2003 poultry census report without an exact map of the affected zone. “After drawing a final map of the affected zone the poultry figure for cull-ing was reduced to 38,500 from 45,000. Initially we had calculated the figure based on the guideline of the government and the poultry census report of 2003. But practically after conducting survey we found that bird population has been reduced drastically in the private poultry farms.“In fact many private poultry farms in English Bazaar did not rear poultry fearing fresh outbreak of Bird Flu in the country. So, finally the figure was further reduced to 23,500 from 38,500”, Mr NK Shit told The Statesman over phone. “We do not have an exact list of private poultry farms running in our district to estimate the exact poultry population”, he added. The ARD officials also could not estimate the figure of imported poultry in the unorganised whole sale market of Malda due to lack of official documents. The traders are secretly selling imported birds in the district. The administration has, however, intensified police patrolling to curb the practice.