Bangladesh deploys army to fight bird flu epidemic

Dhaka, March 28 – Army was called out in Bangladesh Wednesday to help in culling tens of thousands of poultry as the deadly H1N5 virus, commonly called bird flu, spread to new areas in the country, health officials said.

The soldiers were given strict instructions to supervise and monitor the destruction of the fowls infected with the virus.

“The army’s assistance has been sought to better tackle the bird flu challenge facing the country,” said C S Karim, Health Adviser to the interim government.

Karim said the Health Ministry’s manpower resources and logistical facilities were already stretched while the infection was travelling fast to new areas.

The situation became more critical after the report claimed that the virus had stricken more than 1000 small poultry farms in central and eastern districts in Bangladesh.

About 50,000 chicken were culled in Bangladesh since the detection of bird flu infection in the South Asian country two weeks ago.

About half a million people, engaged in the poultry industry, were under the threat of losing jobs as farm owners were reporting a rapid decline in sales of fowls. (DPA)