# 1598
Make of this what you will. The takeaway line from the story below:
'The disease is spreading,' livestock department chief Sunil Chandra Ghosh said while insisting authorities had the situation under control.
This from the Straits Times.
Feb 2, 2008
Indian state says bird flu outbreak 'under control'
KOLKATA - AN INDIAN state said it had brought the country's worst bird flu outbreak 'under control' on Saturday as neighbouring Bangladesh reported the virus was spreading.
The deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu had been detected in 13 of 19 districts in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal since the outbreak began in mid-January.
The state's Animal Resource Development Minister Anisur Rahaman said that health workers expected to complete the culling of three million poultry by late Saturday.
'We have so far culled nearly 2.9 million poultry since January 14,' when the outbreak - India's third and worst - was confirmed, Mr Rahaman said.
He added that the 'next plan is to disinfect thousands of backyard poultry yards where culling has been done'.
The state government was 'taking all possible steps to stop the spread of the H5N1 strains of bird flu to humans,' he said.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh slaughtered tens of thousands of chickens on Saturday as four more districts reported outbreaks.
'The disease is spreading,' livestock department chief Sunil Chandra Ghosh said while insisting authorities had the situation under control.
The H5N1 strain has now spread to 34 out of Bangladesh's 64 districts, forcing the police and livestock officials to slaughter 35,000 chickens in the past three days, officials said.
Humans typically catch bird flu by coming into direct contact with infected poultry, but experts fear the H5N1 strain may mutate into a form easily transmissible between people.
'All culling workers have been asked to stay for at least 10 days in hospital to take the full course of (antiviral drug)) Tamilflu and burn clothes worn during culling,' Mr Rahaman said.
At least 700 were already in hospital taking Tamiflu, recommended by the World Health Organisation for use as a first line of defence against the virus, Mr Rahaman said.
No cases of humans catching bird flu have yet been reported in India or Bangladesh. But in Indonesia on Friday, a 31-year-old woman died of the virus, bringing the toll to 102 in the nation worst hit by the illness. -- AFP
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