Poultry farmers demand relief for losses due to bird flu

The North Zone Broiler and Breeders Association made an appeal on Monday to the government to come to the aid of the bird flu-hit poultry farmers here, and demanded relief for the industry which has been facing rough weather due to the frequent occurrence of bird flu.

A representative of the Association told a press conference, "Poultry is the most important agro-related sector which has maintained a high growth rate of 15-18% per annum consistently for the last three decades, without any budgetary support from the Central or any of the State governments.

"The poultry sector of India is technologically the most advanced, having the latest infrastructure and the best breeds in terms of productivity. Almost 97-98% of the poultry is in the organised sector. Today, the poultry sector supports the livelihood of about 3.2 million Indians and contributes more than Rs 40,000 crore to the GDP."

The association added that more than 90 per cent of the poultry farmers in India are small and marginal and are solely dependent on poultry for their livelihood.

More than 70 per cent of maize is consumed by the poultry sector, making the maize-growing farmers dependent on this sector.

Similarly, four million soya bean farmers will also be affected if the poultry sector suffers, as more than 50 per cent of the soya bean production is consumed by the poultry sector.