Ouseph and his fellow farmers interpreted the situation as a sign that their luck had turned.

Gourmets in the southern and central districts of Kerala have always preferred Kuttanadan duck to the hybrid and broiler species sold locally, especially those brought in from places like Vietnam. Persistent waterlogging of rice fields farmed by local farmers is often said to be the reason for the unique taste of the Kuttanadan duck.

Unfortunately, Ouseph's happiness was fleeting: The Alapuzha farmers' financial stability was again shattered in the third week of April when the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) H5N1 virus returned. Of the 7500 dusks that he raised on his farm, 3000 are now dead in a week because of the influenza.

Action taken

The vets who had assembled in the coastal district to deal with the current crisis have issued an order to slaughter all remaining birds in an effort to stop the sickness from spreading beyond Alapuzha. This time, the bird flu was initially found in the Edathua and Cheruthana regions of Kuttanad but it quickly spread to neighbouring villages. Ouseph’s neighbours, C. Raghunathan and T Devarajan, too, had to kill hundreds of ducks because of the outbreak.

Birds infected with HPAI display signs like nervousness, clumsiness, tremors, trouble breathing, and swelling and inflammation around the eyes, neck, and head, according to veterinarians.

Samples collected from the birds were sent to Bhopal's National Institute of High-Security Animal Disease: Test results released on April 17 confirmed the disease.

According to the local authorities, 21537 birds, primarily ducks, have already died as a result of the disease in the Alapuzha areas.

Also read: Bird flu reported in Kerala's Alapuzzha. How to stay safe?

Recent outbreaks

In the last three years, four separate outbreaks of avian flu have hit the area. The panchayats of Kuttanad, Thakazy, and Vazhuthanam, respectively, reported instances in 2021, 2022, and 2023.

This particular disease has been known to impact birds since the 1960s. Animals, including birds and marine life, have fallen victim to the H5N1 virus all around the globe including in the most inaccessible parts of the Arctic and Antarctic. Penguins, sea lions, polar bears, and elephant seals are among the mammals hit by the virus.

It was in 2020 in Europe that the first cases of the H5N1 virus clade 2.3.4.4b were recorded. Millions of animal and bird species perished as a direct consequence of its many outbreaks.

A new case of human transmission of avian influenza has been reported in Texas, causing widespread alarm among scientists.

A global health emergency, perhaps 100 times worse than the Covid-19 pandemic, would ensue if the virus gains the capacity to move from person to person, according to analysis by scientists.

It is worrisome that the current avian flu strain can infect a wider variety of wild birds and mammals. In response to our inquiry, Suresh Kuchipudi—who is also a professor and chair of the infectious diseases and microbiology department at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Public Health's Centre for Vaccine Research— explained how the likelihood of genetic alterations increase when a virus crosses paths with numerous hosts. Because of this, the possibility of viral evolution and adaptation to mammals is increased.

According to Sajeev Kumar K.R., the Alappuzha district animal husbandry officer, 164 of a farmer's 2,300 ducks at Muttar had died in the past two days. On April 22 and 23, 90 out of 650 chicks at a poultry farm in Ambalappuzha North died.

The transmission of the avian influenza virus to humans is possible though extremely rare. Minister Veena George said that as a result, health officials in Kerala have increased efforts to stop the disease from spreading.

A number of bird species visit the Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary, which is close to Kuttanad and is open all year. Vembanad Lake, the second-largest wetland in India, is a popular stop for migrating birds, and the impacted regions are right on its shores.

Avian influenza, which is now an annual occurrence in Alappuzha and nearby Kottayam, is attributed to the geographical position and the abundance of migrating birds. It is still necessary for the relevant authorities to identify the exact species of bird that spread the sickness to the ducks in the area.

The state government has banned the sale and consumption of eggs, meat, and manure from domesticated birds in certain areas due to the resurgence of influenza. These areas include Muttar, Champakulam, Purakkad, Edathva panchayats, Ambalapuzha South and North, Edathva, and the Harippad Municipality area.

“Each of these areas is a stop for migrating birds. Several migratory bird species visit the Kuttanad and Kumarakom regions of Kerala, which are different from the rest of the state. Conversely, local communities consistently face substantial economic setbacks. Because duck farming is a major source of income for the local people, the risk of human papillomavirus (HPAI) is incredibly high in this region. The current circumstances lead us to the conclusion that birds from other nations are carriers of the virus,'' said Shaji Panikkassery, district coordinator of the Disease Control Project for the state husbandry department. However, we still require additional investigation and study, he said.

"At this time, we do not have any other choice but to engage in mass culling to stop the spread of the deadly disease," he said.

The impact

According to farmers, the risk is more economic than health-related.

As if dealing with the aftermath of two consecutive floods and Covid-19 weren't bad enough, the virus's return has caught them unprepared.

“We seem to have no choice except to participate in massive culling, which is quite strange. The government aid we receive is virtually non-existent. We are facing the prospect of eradicating the duck population due to the sickness for over ten years,'' said duck farmer T V Joseph of Kallara said.

"The farming community needs additional scientific counsel to survive the current circumstances. We need to establish this fact unequivocally and investigate potential treatments. This is in reference to the annual epidemics and whether or not migratory birds are to blame,'' he said.

According to Kerala's forest minister, A. K. Saseendran, the state’s social forestry department has been instructed to keep an eye on migratory birds near Alappuzha and Kottayam.

Authorities, he said, are monitoring unusual deaths of migratory birds; the backwater parts of Alappuzha have been subjected to fishing regulations.

“The government's indifference is exacerbating the problem,” said V. J. Sebastian, a duck farmer in Karuvatta village, the core of the outbreak last year.

“New cases are the sole trigger for the system to take action. There is zero preemptive monitoring by the government. We have not been provided with the scientific guidance to deal with situations like these," Sebastian said.

According to B Rajasekharan, head of the Alappuzha district committee of the Kerala Duck Farmers' Association, it takes a minimum of two weeks to send samples to Bhopal in order to confirm the presence of the virus. Facilities to test and confirm the virus locally are needed in Alapuzha because the pandemic has become an annual occurrence. Getting confirmation early on can help keep culling to smaller areas, which means farmers won't lose as much money, he said.

P. K. Santhosh Kumar, the joint director of the animal husbandry department, reported that neither the Kottayam nor Alappuzha regions had discovered any dead migrating birds. According to him, finding the species that could be behind the disease's spread is crucial. Birdwatchers can spot Siberian cranes, various herons, bitterns, teals, larks, flycatchers, Brahminy kites, and marsh harriers at Vembanad Lake.

At this time, there is no way to stop the spread of the avian flu through vaccination. From the point of view of farmers, they are meticulously raising ducks using scientific methods in accordance with the regulations established by the government. “We are pouring a lot of money into it. Consequently, there have been substantial losses. Culling and cleaning the farms is the only option the authorities have,” Rajasekharan said.

Pasteurella multocida (fowl cholera) and Riemerella anatipestifer (an antibiotic-resistant bacterium) were both detected during last year's inspections of Kuttanad's duck farms.

“Riemerella and fowl cholera are so common in the area that we suspect duck immunity levels have been dropping. This makes them easy targets for the avian flu virus. To boost the duck's immunity, it's important to get experts' help,'' Kumar added.

The current compensation sum is ₹200 for a dead duck that is more than two months old; it is ₹100 for a duck less than two months old.

Farmers say the compensation sums are paltry. After the first major outbreak in 2014, which then became an annual occurrence, many duck farmers in the area sought out alternative work.

The scientific importance of migrating birds can be better understood with the use of a year-round monitoring system, says P.O. Nameer of Kerala Agriculture University's Department of Wildlife Sciences.

Nameer said: “Regular monitoring of wild aquatic birds and the wild bird-poultry-wetland interface is essential to understanding the prevalence of avian influenza viruses.”

The avian flu epidemics in 2014 and 2016 prompted the slaughter of about 8 lakh ducks. Following a short respite, the area saw three additional outbreaks from January 2021 to October 2022, leading to the culling of 2.5 lakh ducks.

“Many people are concerned that common foods like eggs and milk could be a vector for the latest avian flu outbreak. The good news is that these typical breakfast foods almost certainly do not contain the avian flu virus,'' said N M. Arun, a public health expert. He said the main ways that birds spread the flu are through their saliva, faeces, and respiratory secretions.