By Gopal Sharma
KATHMANDU, July 1 (Reuters) – Nepal is battling a widening bird flu outbreak that has led to the culling of more than half a million birds and government quarantine facilities have been put on alert to ensure food safety standards for consumers, officials said on Wednesday.
The first case this year was detected in March and has since spread to 11 of the country’s 77 districts, including the capital, Kathmandu.
No human infections have been reported, officials said.
Authorities have culled 658,313 chickens and destroyed more than one million eggs and 222,000 kg (489,400 pounds) of poultry feed, Mukul Upadhyaya, spokesperson for the Department of Livestock Services, said.
“It is under control in other places except in Kathmandu Valley, where cases are severe,” Upadhyaya told Reuters.
Nepal’s only zoo, in Kathmandu, has been closed to the public since June 19 after infections were detected, as a precautionary measure. Birds including vultures and ducks, as well as some leopard cats, have died, zoo spokesperson Ganesh Koirala said.
Livestock experts are monitoring the outbreak and overseeing culling operations, officials said.
Nepal does not import poultry meat, but authorities have stepped up vigilance along its open border with India to prevent illegal imports, Upadhyaya added.
The government has urged the public to report any unusual illness or deaths among birds promptly to livestock authorities.
(Reporting by Gopal Sharma; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
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