Humans can't contract bird flu by eating healthy chicken and eggs: Ex-ICMR Director

It is important to wear proper PPE kits and gloves in farms

Since Wednesday last week, when the first case of bird flu was reported in the country, at least 10 states have confirmed the outbreak of avian influenza. But how serious is the new strain of bird flu virus, identified now as H5N8? According to former director-general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Professor Nirmal Kumar Ganguly, there is no immediate danger posed to humans through the consumption of bird meat - as long as it comes from a "non-infectious" farm.

Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi have so far reported the virus. Fear of contracting the virus, amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, have caused the prices of broiler chicken to crash from around R82/kg to R58/kg in Maharashtra.

Rates of chicken meat have dropped ever since the virus was reported last week. Pic/Bipin Kokate

‘Wet markets face risk'

"Humans cannot contract the disease by eating bird eggs either," he said. "It also doesn't normally get transmitted from eating bird meat, unless there is a huge amount of concentration of the virus - this happens essentially in wet markets where carcasses of ducks, birds, and other things are piled up high.

"During the last bird flu outbreak in Maharashtra, with farms being infected, birds were culled in and around a 5-km perimeter. Even in infected areas, if all precautions such as PPE, gloves, etc. are taken and everything is handled and packed properly, it won't be dangerous," he said.

Ghazipur wholesale poultry market has been closed for 10 days as a preventive measure in New Delhi. Pic/AFP

According to Ganguly, containing infected farms through surveillance is important. "We need to know if the infection is spreading. If domestic and wild birds dying in a particular area, we need to cull there. It is important to also compensate farmers adequately," he added.

Ganguly added that migratory routes of foreign birds must be found, followed, and tracked. "We have had similar experiences in the past and it seems that the same migratory route(s) have been followed.

"Surveillance of birds and of antibodies of this particular strain of bird flu must be conducted. H5N8 is now a known strain, it does not easily infect humans and can rarely be infected from human to human," he said.

5km
Perimeter from infected farms in which birds were culled during last bird flu breakout in state

10
Approx. no. of states that have reported the virus

58
Current cost of chicken (per kg) in Maharashtra