Over 1,200 bird deaths reported in Delhi amid bird-flu situation

He informed that 1,216 bird deaths have been reported since January 6 but did not attribute all the deaths to the flu, as cold stress could be another major reason.

Around 15 crows were found dead in the premises of the Red Fort on January 10. Public entry is restricted into the fort after a sample of a dead crow tested positive for flu.

"Four cranes were found dead in Delhi Zoo a few days ago. Twelve samples were collected on Monday and sent to the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD) of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research for testing," Dr. Singh said.

On Saturday, samples from a dead owl in the Delhi Zoo had tested positive for avian influenza.

However, authorities have not yet received the test results from the Bhopal-based lab.

Last week, Delhi's municipal corporations had imposed a temporary ban on the sale and storage of poultry or processed chicken meat after samples from crows and ducks at parks and lakes in the national capital tested positive for bird flu.

Around 400 ducks were culled at Sanjay Lake on January 11.

The Delhi Government had also banned the sale of processed and packaged chicken brought from outside the city and ordered the closure of the Ghazipur poultry market in east Delhi for 10 days.

However, the ban was lifted on Thursday after all the 100 samples taken from Ghazipur, Asia's largest poultry market, tested negative.