Raju Acharya from Chitwan had just started raising local chickens commercially. He was planning to sell the 913 local chickens in his coop around the New Year, i.e. around Baisakh. He had spent Rs 750,000 on raising chickens. He had estimated that he would earn at least Rs 1.1 million from selling chickens. But things didn't go as he had hoped. The first straw fell on his head. One day, government technicians came to Acharya's coop and destroyed all the chickens and feed they could find. Even though bird flu was not confirmed in the chickens in his coop, all the chickens in the coop were destroyed after bird flu was confirmed in a nearby coop. There is a rule that all chickens in a certain area should be killed after bird flu is confirmed.

'Even though bird flu was not found in the chickens I raised, I had to destroy them all because it was found in another farm,' said Raju Acharya from Bharatpur-4. On 11 Chait, all the chickens and 13 quintals of feed in his coop had to be destroyed. He had kept the chickens for only 4 months. The chickens start being sold after 4 and a half months.

He has received the relief money from the government after 3 months of destroying the chickens that were there at the time of sale. He said that he received a lump sum of 498 thousand rupees for the destroyed chickens and feed. ‘This amount is less compared to the damage. It was like hitting a stone at the first bite. But I have not given up and will raise chickens again. This amount will help me a little,’ he said.

Last Chait, bird flu was confirmed at the Layers Chicken Farm in Bharatpur-4. 12,950 chickens of 15 months and 5,000 chickens of 9 months had to be destroyed. Similarly, 55,440 eggs and 11,750 kg of feed had to be destroyed. Farm owner Ishwar Kandel informed that he has received Rs 16.149 crore in relief from the government.

‘It has been 10 years since I started raising chickens. This is the first time I have had to bear such a loss. There is no accounting of the loss. Whatever relief the government has given will help me raise chickens again,’ said Kandel. After the bird flu outbreak, chicks can be raised only after 5 months due to cleaning and management work in the coop. So now he plans to raise chicks after Bhadau.

Layers start laying eggs after 6 months of raising chicks. After that, they lay eggs well for a year. Later, egg production starts to decline. Bird flu was confirmed in another poultry farm in Chitwan, Khairhani Municipality-1, in Jestha. The said farm also had Bikase layer chickens raised for eggs. 14,000 layer chickens of 29 weeks and 24,200 of 33 weeks had to be destroyed.

Similarly, 295,050 eggs and 12,000 kg of feed were also destroyed. The details of the destroyed chickens, eggs and feed from the two farms where bird flu was detected and one farm in the vicinity were sent by the Chitwan Animal Services Office to the Kathmandu Animal Services Department on 18 Asad, said Dr. Sabina Mishra, Information Officer of the Animal Services Office. All the farms have received the money.

507.1 crore relief distribution across the country

Farmers across the country have received Rs 507.115,704 in relief for poultry, birds, feed, meat and eggs destroyed due to bird flu. 105 farmers and farm operators have received this amount. Dr. Mukul Upadhyay, Focal Person for Bird Flu at the Animal Services Department, informed that farmers who came to the Department of Documents till 24th Asad have received relief.

‘Until 24th Asad, the relief amount has been transferred to the bank accounts of all the farmers from wherever the documents came from,’ Upadhyay said. According to the information issued by the Animal Services Department, this time bird flu (H5N9) was confirmed in Morang on 4th Chait. Since then, bird flu had spread to 9th Asad in 11 districts of the country. Bird flu has not been seen anywhere else except 2 farms in Chitwan.