7 crows found dead in Karnataka, triggers bird flu panic

Mangaluru, Jan 12 : Amid fears of bird flu spread in neighbouring Kerala, seven crows were found dead at different places in Mangaluru on Monday.
Three crows were found on the road near Pacchanady dumping yard, two near Shaktinagar housing colony and two more near the Kuppepadavu school road, sources in the state health department said. Health officials have visited the spots and collected samples.
It may be recalled that six crows were found dead in Manjanady near here recently and samples collected from them had tested negative for bird flu.
Health Minister K. Sudhakar had stated a couple of days back that there were no cases of bird flu in Karnataka and all the samples tested so far have returned negative.
He had also directed the health officials in the border districts to be vigilant in the wake of an avian flu outbreak in other states, including Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
Four districts in southern Karnataka bordering Kerala have been put on alert following the outbreak of bird flu (H5N8) in the neigbouring state.