Mumbai: On Day 2, BMC receives 356 panic calls over bird flu

The BMC has said that only well cooked chicken and eggs must be eaten

Though experts have been advising citizens not to panic about the bird flu, the BMC received more than twice the number of calls on day two after it issued a helpline number.

The BMC has asked people to call on 1916, a helpline number for civic complaints about any query or to report deaths of birds. The number was flooded with calls from Tuesday onwards. The BMC received 170 calls till 7 am on Wednesday. In the next 24 hours, the Disaster

Management Department received 356 more calls. "The calls may be repetitive. We are diverting calls to the ward offices concerned and don't have detailed information," said an officer.

The BMC issued an advisory to not touch any dead bird, to wash hands thoroughly if they handle any poultry products like chicken or eggs and to only eat fully cooked meat.