This could be one of the reasons why the deadly virus has spread so fast — from one district in the beginning to almost eight districts now.

Two lorries full of poultry birds and four lorries carrying eggs were intercepted at the Birbhum-Murshidabad border on Tuesday. These were being smuggled out of the Rampurhat area in Birbhum where the virus was first detected and where culling operations are on.

“We are trying our best to cull the birds in Rampurhat sub-division, but there is public resistance and some more time is needed. We cannot rule out the fact that some poultry birds are being smuggled out. We have informed the police. This is a dangerous trend and may help spread the virus. The poultry that was intercepted will be culled,” said Dilip Das, Director of the state Animal Resources Development department.

“It is a fact that birds from affected areas are being smuggled out. We have told the police to keep vigil but they just don’t have the numbers when you look at the magnitude of the problem,” said Prasanna Kumar Mondol, SDO, Rampurhat.

In Birbhum, which was the first to be affected, four lakh birds are to be culled. So far 117,736 birds have been culled — a figure which the locals say is exaggerated. Culling teams have ceased to function in many pockets, including 20 villages in Kestoghora and Masra GP under Rampurhat 1 block, areas of Margram under the Rampurhat 2 block. Recently, West Bengal ARD Minister Anisur Rehman had visited Rampurhat and announced that 300 culling teams will operate in the area. However, only 134 teams have worked in the district till date, with only 56 teams operating in Rampurhat.

The two trucks loaded with eggs, intercepted early on Tuesday morning at Nagpur check post in Nalhati on the National Highway 60, were coming from a poultry farm in Margram. Around 10.20 am, four trucks carrying chickens were also caught in the same area. According to locals, chickens are being shifted to Jharkhand, which is only about 20 to 25 km from Rampurhat. In Rampurhat subdivision, there are 450 poultry farms with over 1.5 lakh birds, though culling teams did not find a single bird at many places.

“Government employees are not serious at all. Even in Mahipara, where the bird samples tested positive for the first time, culling operations remains incomplete. There are 13 small and big poultry owners in Margram 1 and 2 gram panchayat who have smuggled out chickens and eggs. We have informed the district magistrate about this,” said Muhammed Zakir Hussain, panchayat sabhapati of Margram.