PESHAWAR, Feb 12: World Health Organisation has said that there is no danger of bird flu virus in any part of Pakistan. "Even if there happened to be some bird-flu virus in poultry , it was not harmful, because the people in this part of the world cooked food on extremely high temperature that led to the elimination of all viruses," said WHO's representative, Dr Khalif Bile, at a news conference here on Thursday.

Flanked by NWFP Information Minister Asif Iqbal Daudzai, he said the bird flu had so far killed a total of 18 people - five in Thailand and 13 in Vietnam. According to him, Pakistan was safe from the virus and there was no reason people should stop eating chicken and its products.

He said that precautionary measures were important because the disease was transmitted through migratory birds, which could be stopped. The situation in Vietnam and Thailand was altogether different from that of Pakistan, he added.

On this occasion, the provincial information minister said the negative propaganda had adversely affected the people associated with the poultry trade. Quoting the WHO guidelines, he said that food should be cooked at 70 degree centigrade for five minutes. In Pakistan, the people prepared food at 90 degree centigrade for about 28 minutes.

"Hence, there is no cause for fear," he said, adding the government was aware of its responsibility regarding the preventive measures to control diseases.

He said that a committee had been formed at the federal level, where representatives of the health, livestock, information, food and agriculture department had been exploring ways and means to provide correct picture of the presence of bird flu virus in Pakistan.

The health department, he said, had already issued instructions to the general public as well as the owners and workers of the poultry farms. He said that the poultry workers should wear gloves and glasses while coming in contact with the chickens.