Rupandehi, January 21:

In the backdrop of the detection of first bird flu case in Nepal, poultry entrepreneurs in Kapilvastu, Rupandehi and Nawalparasi have formed Lumbini Poultry Entrepreneurs’ Forum (LPEF) to take preventive measures to check the entry of bird flu in the districts. The 19-member forum has selected Hom Bahadur Galami as the president and Gopal Tandan as its vice-president.

Issuing a press release at a press conference today, the forum stated that it was formed after a gathering of all poultry entrepreneurs, egg industries, fresh house owners, chicken and poultry feed producers from Nawalparasi’s Bardaghat in the east to Kapilvastu’s Chandrauta in the west. It stated there were a total of five hatcheries, seven poultry feed industries, seven egg industries and 400 big and small poultry keepers in the three districts where over Rs 1 billion had been invested in poultry.

At the conference, chief of Animal Quarantine Regional Office at Belahiya of Rupandehi Dr Bijayakanta Jha said that there was no symptom of bird flu in the region so far. Jha added that the probability of importing infected birds and eggs in the districts was minimal as all the check points in Narayangarh, Gaindakot, Bardaghat, Krishnanagar, Belahiya and Triveni were on high alert. He said checkpoints at Karauta, Semara and Bhagwanpur in Rupandehi were also on high alert.

Meanwhile, chief of District Livestock Services Office, Rupandehi, Dr Bhagelu Yadav urged all media personnel to be sensitive while covering news related to bird flu.

Saying that the media had a major role to play to avert such crisis in the country, he said that misconstrued news of the death of five pigeons in Butwal’s Siddhababa temple had badly affected poultry business in the region. He said that the pigeons had died of cold. However, he said, the demand for poultry meat went up today following the news that the region was free from bird flu.

Similarly, checking of birds and their products imported to Pokhara from various districts has been intensified. Senior veterinary physician of Regional Veterinary Research Laboratory, Pokhara, Parshuram Bhusal said tests initiated by poultry entrepreneurs and veterinary doctors had been intensified in both the check points on Prithvi Highway and Siddhartha Highway since January 17.

“The meat and eggs can be eaten after cooking them well since no symptom of bird flu has been seen in Pokhara,” Bhusal said.

Chicken are brought in Pokhara from Chitwan, Jhapa and India. However, of the total chicken meat consumed in Kaski district, 70 per cent is produced locally and the rest comes from other districts. The entrepreneurs said there was a total investment of Rs 1 billion in poultry business in Kaski.