Upon official confirmation of an Avian Influenza (H5N1) outbreak within the Darbhanga district, the Bihar government has sounded a high alert across the state. It comes on the heels of mysterious deaths of thousands of crows in the past fortnight that set off a wave of panic among local residents.
The epicenter of the outbreak is noted to be Ward No. 31 (Bhigo area) of the urban limits of Darbhanga. Almost 10,000 crows have been suspected to have died in different parts of the district since mid-January, local ward councillors and district officials said. First samples from the dead birds were collected on 12 January and sent to the National Institute of High-Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) in Bhopal.
Results were provided on Friday, January 30, 2026, and determined the presence of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus. Emergency Measures and Disposal. After laboratory confirmation, the administration of the district together with the Animal Husbandry Department implemented a response:
- Safe Disposal: Thousands of carcasses were collected by workers with full PPE kits and placed in deep lime-lined pits, using JCB machines, to avoid further contaminating the environment.
- Sanitization: Disinfection drives have been started in the Bhigo area and nearby communities using sodium hypochlorite.
- Rapid Response Teams: Veterinary doctors are being sent out to all parts of the district to assess poultry health.
Surveillance and Restrictions
Dr. Mohammad Intikhab Akhtar, a senior member of the Animal Husbandry Department, said serological surveillance has been mandated for all commercial poultry farms. "We are testing antibodies in the blood of chickens in the district to verify that infection has not spread from wild birds to the poultry sector," Dr. Akhtar said. No ban on poultry sales has been officially announced yet, but the administration has encouraged residents to:
Do not come into contact with any dead or ill wild birds. Make sure meat and eggs are cooked well at high temperatures. Notify the nearest veterinary hospital of unusual bird deaths. Impact on Local Residents. The sight of birds falling from trees in open spaces, including the Bhigo cremation ground, has caused alarm locally. Health officials are watching people who were near the dead birds for flu-like symptoms, although no human transmission has been reported across the state to date.
