WBPCC General Secretary Manas Bhuniya told mediapersons that children were suffering from fever in Howrah, Birbhum and Murshidabad districts. “A medical team should probe if there was any link with the bird flu virus,” he added.

“We demand that there should be a ban on the serving of eggs and chicken in the affected districts for three weeks,” he said. “I have spoken to Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and Union Health Minister Ambumani Ramadoss regarding the issue. They have expressed disappointment at the manner in which the bird flu situation is being dealt with by the state government,” he said. “The state government was late in informing the Centre about the outbreak. It is due to absolute callousness and lack of coordination between departments that the disease has spread,” Bhuniya alleged.