PESHAWAR, Jan 10: The provincial government is likely to introduce a law aimed at protecting people from bird flu, sources say.

“The government has decided to introduce a law to ensure safety from infection of H5N1 virus,” they said, adding that the proposed legislation would put under scrutiny poultry businesses throughout the province.

“Violators of the law would be penalised,” the sources said. The step has been taken keeping in view the spreading virus.

A three-member committee comprising officials of the provincial livestock department has been asked to forward their recommendations within 15 days to the government regarding the proposed law, they added. The law would primarily be designed to put brakes on the poultry business run by untrained people.

“The sale of poultry would be allowed at designated places only. Police would be authorised to take action against those involved in the business in open streets and bazaars,” they said.

Health officials confirmed in December that eight people had tested positive for the H5N1 bird-flu virus in the Frontier, one of whom died.

Poultry farms and outlets would not be allowed in residential areas, they said, adding that the law would also prescribe ways for safe disposal of poultry waste. The sources said that people associated with the industry would be required to dig 8-to-10 feet deep ditches near their outlets for disposing of poultry waste.

Poultry shops and farms located in residential and congested areas of the province would be shifted to designated places, they said. Under the law, poultry workers would be bound to adopt certain safety measures.

A member of the committee said that they were planning talks with all stakeholders before making the final recommendations.

Later, the recommendations would be sent to the government for approval and promulgation as the law, they said.

The sources said that the provincial government had already released Rs5 million to the provincial Agriculture and Livestock Department to purchase equipment and strengthen the work force for tackling the virus. The federal government, sources said, had also sent equipment and safety devices, including masks, gloves and gowns to the district-level offices of the department.

“In future, the government would provide Rs500,000 to each family of a person died from the virus,” they said.

The government, they said, had paid Rs6.819 million in compensation to farm owners in the province for losses they had suffered due to culling of poultry.

The sources said that during the last few months, about 25,000 chickens had been culled in Mansehra and Abbottabad districts following confirmation of the virus. About 30,000 chickens were vaccinated against bird flu.