Amid the fear of Avian Influenza or Bird Flu, the Central government has requested the state governments in the country to think over on the decision of banning poultry sale and resume sale of poultry products from non-affected areas.
“States have been requested to rethink their decisions to impose a ban on the sale of poultry and poultry products and allow the selling of poultry and poultry products sourced from the non-infected areas/states. It is reiterated that the consumption of well-cooked chicken and eggs is safe for humans. Consumers should not heed to baseless rumours that are unscientific and often lead to confusion,” the FAHD release said.
Recently, the Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying stated that properly cooked chicken and eggs are safe to consume. Along with it, the department also suggested some healthy and safe measures to prepare meat-
- Avoid consumption of raw/undercooked meat.
- Wash your hands duly before cooking.
- Utensils used in preparation must be clean.
- Meat must be cleaned thoroughly before cooking.
- Meat should be cooked at an optimal temperature and for the optimal time.
The ministry further added that the ban has severely affected the poultry and egg markets. So far, 11 states in the country have reported cases of Bird Flu including Rajasthan, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Gujarat.
Earlier, the Central government had deployed teams to monitor the situation the affected areas of the country.
