"India declares itself bird flu free"

NEW DELHI:  India announced on Saturday it was free of bird flu, six months after the country first reported an outbreak of the deadly virus.    "India has declared that it has regained its status as an avian influenza-free country," the Indian health ministry said in a statement.   

"There has been no further outbreak of avian influenza in India after 18 April."   

India's animal husbandry department has sent its report on the country's bird-flu status to the World Organization of Animal Health, the statement said.   

The disease was first confirmed in chickens in western India in February, leading to the culling of more than a million birds by health authorities.   

According to the Paris-based animal organization's health code, a country can regain bird flu-free status if no new cases are reported for three months after an outbreak has been stamped out, provided proper surveillance is in place.   

India promised in its statement to continue to monitor for bird flu cases.    "Surveillance will continue in the country as a whole, especially in the outbreak areas, areas of major poultry concentration and those visited by migratory birds," it said.   

The ministry said more than 60,000 birds have been tested for the disease since the February outbreak in the country of more than one billion people where many live in close proximity to poultry.   

No human cases of bird flu have been reported in India. The virus has so far killed 138 people worldwide, fewer than other types of flu, but experts fear the highly-lethal H5N1 strain could mutate to become transmissible between people and trigger a human pandemic.  

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I guess I've become cynical because I'm not reassured.