Nepalgunj, February 22:

The police today seized five crates filled with boiler chicken that were being transferred though a short-cut route from Bardiya to Nepalgunj.

Chief superintendent of police at the district police office, Banke, Shiva Lamichhane, said they were checking the condition of the seized chickens.

Nepalgunj, which lies on Indo-Nepal border, has been put on high alert after the outbreak of bird flu in India.

Ten government offices including the District Administration Office, the District Police Office and the District Livestock Office held a special meeting to discuss the bird flu issue.

The meeting decided to ban the import of chickens from India and only to bring into use tested chicken in Nepal. Action will be taken against those selling untested chicken, the meet decided. The meet also agreed to spread greater awareness on bird flu through advertisement.

Chief District Officer (CDO), Binod Kumar Adhikari, meanwhile informed about the formation of a panel to monitor bird flu in the district. The panel will monitor each hotel, poultry firm and chicken slaughterhouse starting from tomorrow.

The consumption of chicken products has gone down in Nepalgunj after the news spread of the arrival of bird flu in India. Entrepreneurs dealing with chicken said their business was affected by the latest news of bird flu.