A few bird carcasses spotted in a Srinagar locality triggered fears of avian influenza among the residents. Poultry division of Kashmir division however claimed that birds are disease free as per test reports.
Mohammad Ismail, a resident of Gupkar area here was shocked to find two dead crows in his lawn on Sunday. Later in the evening, he spotted more dead birds in the locality, he said. “Given bird flu that spread across many states earlier this year, I have been apprehensive about any unusual bird death,” he said. Ismail said he had not seen birds falling dead like this before and said he plans to take the issue up with the Animal Husbandry Department.
When Greater Kashmir spoke to the Animal Husbandry department, it negated the concerns stating that Kashmir was currently free of Avian flu. “We have tested over 3000 samples in the past four months and in the past one month, we have had no positive report,” a senior official told Greater Kashmir.
In past, bird flu had been confirmed in over 28 samples of crows and other wild birds in Kashmir.