KATHMANDU, AUGUST 23
The government has issued norms for providing incentive facilities to employees deployed to control bird flu.
The employees and persons working in disease control section, laboratory, emergency disease exploration and rapid response teams will be entitled to the incentive. As per the norms published in the Nepal Gazette, persons and employees deputed to the field for the control of bird flu will get 100 per cent amount of their monthly remuneration or wage as financial incentive during the operation period. If they work on public holiday, the incentives they are entitled to will be 200 per cent.
In addition, the employees and persons will get lunch and dinner expenses. According to norms, they will also receive hazard insurance of one million rupees each. If any employee or person dies while pursuing their duty, the government will provide compensation of one million rupees to his/her legal heir.
The norms aim to encourage the government employees to actively work to prevent and control the highly pathogenic avian influenza across the country. Similarly, the government has made a provision of an 11-member Bird Flu Control Coordination Committee led by the director general of the Department of Livestock Services. Officials from various stakeholder government agencies act as members of this coordination committee.
The functions, duties and powers of the coordination committee are to prepare plans and standards related to prevention and control of bird flu; establish surveillance, emergency disease investigation, diagnosis and control room, mobilise necessary resources and means for disease control, impose ban on sale or distribution, storage and transportation of poultry birds and products in the infected area and facilitate destruction thereof, manage information and communication related to disease, and coordinate and collaborate with all three levels of government and authorities concerned.
Similarly, there will be a 10-member Bird Flu Control Committee led by the CDO in each district. The committee has been tasked with the responsibilities of making arrangements for disease prevention, control and distribution of relief, preparing and implementing district-level action plan.
A version of this article appears in the print on August 24, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.
