Jharkhand Seals West Bengal Border
Recombinomics Commentary 19:29
January 20, 2008
The Jharkhand government has sealed the borders of its nine districts and constituted a high-level committee to monitor the situation following the deadly Avian flu in West Bengal.
Official sources said the committee, headed by Chief Secretary P P Sharma, yesterday decided to seal borders of Ranchi, Singhbhum, Chaibasa, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Dumka, Jamtara, Pakur and Sahebganj with the neighbouring West Bengal.
The above comments indicate Jharkhand has sealed its border with West Bengal (see satellite map). Recently, H5N1 was confirmed in the Saltora block of Bankura, which shares a border with Jharkhand. Earlier, H5N1 was confirmed in multiple blocks in Birbhum, which also share borders with Jharkhand.
H5N1 has spread throughout West Bengal, but the rapid spread is likely linked to wild birds, which limit the effectiveness of sealed borders.
Medical and veterinary personnel are also being dispatched to Jharkhand to assess the bird flu situation in birds and patients.
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