India to test migratory birds to prevent flu

SHIMLA, India, Monday (AFP) Indian wildlife officials plan to test flocks of migratory birds which have started arriving ahead of winter, amid a widening scare over bird flu, an official said Sunday.

"To monitor these birds for possible avian influenza virus, which causes the bird flu, we have started collecting blood samples of the birds for DNA studies to rule out bird flu," said K.K. Gupta, Himachal Pradesh state wildlife department chief.

Each autumn, tens of thousands of migratory birds arrive for the winter in several parts of India, including the sprawling Pong wetland in the northern Indian Himalayan foothills.

Indian officials said the precaution was being taken as many of the birds would be arriving from countries affected by the disease.

"We are also alerting people living close to these water bodies to not hunt these migratory birds. They should even avoid killing domestic fowl for their own consumption," Gupta said.It is illegal to hunt or kill migratory birds, but local residents sometimes flout these laws.

The spread of the human H5N1 strain of avian flu in migrating birds has sparked a worldwide scare and several countries have been taking action to prevent the disease infiltrating their borders.

The Indian government earlier this month said there were no signs of a bird flu outbreak in the country, but said it was on the alert for unusual numbers of bird deaths and was in touch with state governments on the issue.