During the year 2025 (till 24^th July 2025) outbreaks of Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) in domestic poultry has been reported in 10 States of the country namely Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha.

 

Year wise number of outbreaks of Avian Influenza for the last five years are as under:

 

S.No	Year	No of outbreaks
1	2021	118
2	2022	22
3	2023	15
4	2024	49
5	2025 (till 24th July 2025)	41

 

Further, sporadic occurrence of Avian Influenza has been observed in atypical hosts such as tiger, lion, leopard, jungle cat and domestic cat.

The steps taken for strengthening surveillance and developing predictive system for early warning steps and to prevent and control Avian Influenza (Bird Flu) are as under:

 

1. The National Action Plan for Prevention, Control and Containment of Avian Influenza (Revised 2021) has been formulated which provides comprehensive guidelines for preparedness, identification and notification of affected areas, culling operations, movement restrictions, implementation of biosecurity measures, active surveillance in poultry farms backyard poultry and live bird markets (LBMs), migratory bird habitats, along with post-operation surveillance protocols.

 

2. Advisories have been issued to all States/UTs to enhance preparedness ahead of the winter migratory bird season including strengthening surveillance in high-risk areas in  coordination with wildlife and health authorities under the One Health, enforcing biosecurity protocols in poultry farms, restricting movement and formation of  Rapid Response Teams (RRTs).

 

3. Poultry Disease Action Plan, 2024 has been developed with aim to build a resilient and disease free poultry sector including biosecurity guideline for backyard and commercial poultry farms.

 

4. Under the component Assistance to States for Control of Animal Disease (ASCAD), of Livestock Health & Disease Control Program (LHDCP) States/UTs are financially supported on sharing basis for compensating affected poultry owners for the culling of birds. Financial support is also provided for establishment and strengthening of laboratories, research & innovation, capacity building and training/awareness on topics like Good Animal Husbandry Practices, biosecurity/sanitary measures, timely reporting of unusual mortality events etc.

 

5. A National Joint Outbreak Response Team (NJORT) comprising representatives from the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying, National Centre for Disease Control, Indian Council of Medical Research, and Indian Council of Agriculture Research has been constituted to investigate outbreaks and coordinated field investigations and support for control and containment operations.

 

6. To ensure trade continuity amidst localized outbreaks, the Department is allowing formation of avian influenza disease free compartments for poultry products in line with WOAH guidelines.

 

7. The use of Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H9N2) vaccine has been permitted using an indigenous seed strain, adding an additional tool to support disease prevention in the country.

 

8. The National Animal Disease Referral Expert System (NADRES_v2) of ICAR-NIVEDI, has developed an early warning system powered by Artificial Intelligence to deliver 2 months’ advance prediction of disease forecasting for advance preparedness and response.

 

This information was given by Union Minister of State, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Prof. S.P. Singh Baghel, in a written reply in Rajya Sabha on 30^th July, 2025.

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(Release ID: 2150207)