94 new bird deaths reported in Maharashtra

This picture has been used for representational purpose

As many as 94 fresh bird deaths have been reported in Maharashtra amid the avian influenza scare, the state government said on Tuesday.

It took the death toll of birds in the state since January 8 -- when alert about bird flu was sounded -- to 20,017, the government said, adding that daily mortality has been declining in the last eight days.

As many as 94 dead birds were found on Monday and their samples were sent to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal and the Disease Investigation Section, Pune to ascertain the cause of death, an official said.

The dead birds included 63 poultry birds, 25 crows and others including herons and parrots.

The statement, meanwhile, also said that samples of dead poultry birds from Mahape and Ghansoli in Thane district, sent on January 30, have tested positive for bird flu.

So far, 72,106 poultry birds from infected zones have been culled and 44,686 eggs and 63,339 kg of poultry feed have been destroyed. To avoid the spread of infection, carcasses are put in a gunny sack and buried in a ditch lined with a layer of lime.

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