Pakistani Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Livestock Sikandar Hayat Bosan has said that the poultry industry suffered estimated losses of between 8 billion and 10 billion rupees (about 133.33 million to 166.67 million U.S. dollars) because of bird flu over the last year.

The figure was an estimate based on reports by experts and the poultry industry, and there was no economic study detailing the exact losses, local newspaper Daily Times quoted Bosan on Friday as saying.

Bosan said that some 200,000 birds had been culled to prevent the spread of bird flu.

The government would pay farmers compensation of 23 million rupees (about 383,333 dollars), or about 75 percent of the total 30 million rupees (500,000 dollars) cost of the culled birds, he said.

Bosan said the government had set up 13 laboratories in areas affected by bird flu for the purposes of surveillance and diagnosis.

He said the federal government allocated 1 billion rupees ( about 16.67 million dollars) to revitalize the poultry industry following the bird flu outbreak, and approved a 39.85 million rupees (about 664,166 dollars) project to control the virus.

Provincial livestock departments had been given 100 million rupees (1.67 million dollars) each to deal with bird flu and compensate farmers, he added.

Source: Xinhua