WITH 4,479 bird deaths recorded in Maharashtra on Tuesday, the toll has risen to 12,752 in the past 12 days. Of the total, 4,351 poultry birds were found dead across the state, the highest toll in a day since January 8. Of them, around 3,700 poultry birds were found dead at Sawargad taluka in Yavatmal.
A total of 24 districts in the state have reported unnatural bird deaths. Of this, 12 districts have confirmed the cause of such deaths to be avian influenza or bird flu.
On Tuesday, 106 poultry birds were found dead in Palghar, 26 in Satara, two in Solapur, seven in Nashik, 22 in Ahmednagar, 145 in Beed, 95 in Nanded, 50 in Amravati, 96 in Nagpur and 102 from Wardha.
Forty-nine birds like herons, sparrows, and parrots were found dead on Tuesday with two in Mumbai, 38 in Thane, one each in Pune, Jalgaon, Ahmednagar, Nanded and Amravati and four in Gondia. Total 79 crows were found dead, of which five were in Mumbai, 52 in Thane, three in Palghar, 11 in Ratnagiri, two in Ahmednagar, one each in Beed, Osmanabad and Wardha and three in Amravati.
On January 10, two crows’ samples from Mumbai had tested positive for bird flu. Following this, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had released the helpline number, 1916, for locals to raise complaints of unnatural bird deaths in the city. Since the crows’ samples tested positive for bird flu in Mumbai, the civic body’s Disaster Management Cell has received 1,795 complaints of bird deaths from across the city. These complaints include deaths of crows, pigeons and parrots among other birds.
The 24 districts where unnatural bird deaths have been reported are Yavatmal, Akola, Amravati, Mumbai, Thane, Ratnagiri, Beed, Parbhani, Latur, Gondia, Chandrapur, Nagpur, Nashik, Nanded, Satara, Ahmednagar, Pune, Solapur, Bhandara, Raigad, Sangli, Wardha, Nandurbar and Jalgaon.