DW BUREAU / LUDHIANA After the National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal confirmed avian influenza in the samples of birds in Suba Singh Poultry farm at Kila Raipur, Deputy Commissioner Varinder Kumar Sharma constituted a nine-member committee to begin and oversee culling of poultry birds and containment operations at the earliest. The Deputy Commissioner said that the Punjab government has notified the poultry farm as an infected area on the outbreak of avian influenza among its birds. He said that Additional Deputy Commissioner (Khanna) Sakatar Singh Bal would be chairman of the panel and SDM Payal Mankanwal Singh Chahal, ADCP Jaskiranjit Singh Teja, Deputy Director Animal Husbandry, BDPO Dehlon, Divisional Forest Officer, SMO Dehlon, Naib Tehsildar Dehlon and Executive Engineer PWD Adesh Gupta would ensure culling and containment operations smoothly. He said that within 0-1km area around epicentre of disease in the poultry farm has been declared an infected zone and 0-10 km area around poultry farm has been designated as surveillance zone. Sharma said that the committee would ensure no live/dead birds, unprocessed poultry meat, eggs, feeds or any material/goods taken out and brought into poultry farm besides no person would bring or attempt to bring into the market any poultry product which is known to be infected with the disease into the infected zone. He said that culling to be undertaken at the infected area by the team of experts wearing proper kits or other mandatory protocol to be followed for stopping the spread of the virus further sampling would also be carried out by the experts in the contained zone. Meanwhile the committee headed by ADC Khanna Sakkatar Singh took stock of the situation outside poultry farm and gave directions to the committee members to start the culling process to be completed in the next few days. He also cleared the role of committee members to complete the process safely, smoothly and hassle-free manner. (editor@dailyworld.in)