The bird flu virus seems to has gone out of control as the government has confirmed outbreak of another highly pathogenic H5N1 strain at two farms in Tarlai, a rural area of the federal capital.
One more patient with apparent avian influenza symptoms was rushed to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) on Thursday, bringing the tally of suspected patients at hospital to six in less than a week time.
Authorities have culled over 20,000 chickens at two farms in Tarlai, hardly 15 kilometres away from the capital, nearer than Sihala, where the second outbreak was detected over the weekend.
Fearing spread of deadly influenza, authorities, taking precautionary measures, have expanded their surveillance to a radius of 10 kilometres around infected farms.
"Besides sealing these farms, we have slaughtered more than 20,000 farm chickens to control the spread of H5N1 strain," said Dr Muhammad Afzal, livestock commissioner while talking to Business Recorder.
Monitoring teams have been dispatched to collect samples from all poultry farms falling in the surveillance zone. Blood samples of workers at affected farms have also been collected and sent to National Institute of Health for testing.
Despite government's repeated claims that the virus was not capable of transmitting into humans, Adnan, 13, who hails from Sihala is the sixth suspected patient, who has been admitted to Pims on Thursday with high temperature and flu.
Three patients with apparent symptoms of influenza have already been discharged from the hospital after found clear of deadly disease while two patients, Fazeelat, 35, and a four-year-old child, Zahid brought Wednesday evening are still under treatment in isolation ward.
Hospital sources said their pathological test reports are expected in the next 24 to 36 hours.
It is learnt that nobody from Tarlai has so far been brought to hospital but authorities were considering to declare it a high alert area.
Sources in the health ministry said any resident showing signs of high fever or flu especially from bird flu-hit areas would be under close observation.
"We have formed medical teams, who are visiting affected places regularly and anybody having symptoms would be treated carefully," an official added.
The government is still insisting people not to give up eating chicken but the fresh outbreak has created severe panic among citizens of Islamabad.
APP ADDS: Meanwhile, Health Minister Muhammad Naseer Khan on Thursday said no case of bird flu has so far been detected in humans in Pakistan.
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