New Delhi: The Centre on Monday said it will write to the Delhi government over the closure of the Ghazipur chicken mandi as there is no risk associated with eating properly cooked meat.
This comes as the Delhi government on Monday imposed a restriction on the supply of processed chicken from outside the capital.
"I would request the general public to not panic, the government is taking all precautionary measures. It has been decided to impose a restriction on the supply of processed chicken from outside Delhi," Delhi Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said.
The poultry market in Ghazipur has been shut down temporarily for the past couple of days.
Union Animal Husbandry Minister Giriraj Singh said he will write to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal over the issue.
"It's important to not spread rumours about the bird flu. It's been seen in India since 2006. There's no risk to humans if it's cooked properly before eating. I'm writing to Delhi CM over closure of Ghazipur poultry market," Singh said.
Earlier, testing of eight samples sent to a Bhopal-based laboratory confirmed bird flu in Delhi.
The Delhi Animal Husbandry Department confirmed that all the samples sent to a laboratory in Bhopal have tested positive for bird flu or the avian influenza.
All eight samples -- four from a park in Mayur Vihar Phase 3, three from Sanjay Lake and one from Dwarka -- have been found positive for avian influenza, Dr Rakesh Singh from the animal husbandry unit of the Development Department said.
The samples were sent to Bhopal's National Institute of High Security Animal Disease last week.
The report of the test results arrived on Monday morning, he said.
A drive to cull ducks has begun at the famous Sanjay Lake, where 10 ducks were found dead recently, Singh added.
Officials earlier said that around 50 crows had died in Central Park, Mayur Vihar Phase 3 in a span of three to four days.
A few samples were also sent to a lab in Jalandhar. Their results are awaited, Singh said.
The Delhi Development Authority has already closed Hauz Khas Park, Dwarka Sector 9 Park, Hastsal Park and Sanjay Lake as a precautionary measure in view of the bird flu scare.
Hauz Khas Park in south Delhi has a huge water body and attracts a large crowd every day. However, no death of birds has been reported there.
The poultry market in Ghazipur has also been shut down temporarily.
Besides Delhi, the disease has been confirmed in Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh.
Avian influenza viruses have been circulating worldwide for centuries with four known major outbreaks recorded in the last century.
India reported its first outbreak in 2006.
(With agencies)
