February 04, 2008	Monday	Muharram 25, 1429

MIRPURKHAS Feb 3: The Thar Express carrying 521 passengers reached the Zero Point railway station from Hyderabad on Saturday.

During immigration process, immigration officials stopped eight passengers, including three children of a family, as their visa required them to travel through the Wagah-Attari route. The train later left for Munabao, India.

Another train with 275 passengers reached from India. It left the Zero Point railway station for Mirpurkhas.

RALLY: Activists of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) took out a rally on Sunday from the MQM zonal office in Mirpurkhas. Hundreds of workers and office-bearers on motorcycles participated in the rally. Carrying MQM flags, they raised slogans and marched on different roads. The rally culminated at the MQM zonal office.

ACCIDENT: One person died and 28 others received injuries when a pick-up overturned in Memon Goth, near Islamkot, Tharparkar district, on Sunday.

The occupants of the vehicle were going to attend PPP election public meeting in Islamkot.

Rangers personnel reached the spot and shifted the injured to taluka hospital Islamkot.

One of the injured Vikyo 40, a resident of village Khesar Bajeer died. Other injured were provided first aid.

BIRD FLU: Sale of chicken and eggs plummeted in different parts of the town amid confusion over the outbreak of bird flu. After spread of news of bird flu, people have been avoiding to purchase and eat chicken and eggs. Chicken shops were opened but buyers were missing. Thousands of poultry farms are located here and a major part of their produce is supplied to Karachi.

Chicken seller Mohammad Aslam said that his shop had registered an 80 per cent decline in sale within two days, causing immense losses.

Another seller, Mohammad Usman Rajput, the president of the Sindh Balochistan Feed and Chicks Dealers Association Mirpurkhas zone, said that owners of poultry farms incurred huge losses and if the situation persisted for few more days, the losses would run into billions.

He said that dealers from Karachi had refused to lift chickens.

He said that people should eat chicken as there was no bird flu and farm owners were adopting preventive measures to save chickens from diseases.