S-71.Management of emerging viral diseases of poultry

The Indian poultry industry has witnessed a rapid and phenomenal growth to become one of the most organized industries. The sector plays a substantial role in achieving nutritional security of our country and has a very high export potential. The current global liberalization provides more opportunity for export with greater emphasis on quality production and certification. Concurrent to this development is the emergence of new diseases as well as reemergence of disease in altered form that affect poultry. The major reasons attributed to this is introduction of superior germ plasm for increasing production and productivity, and commercialization of poultry under intensive system of management which has resulted in stress and immunologically weak birds. There is also an increased movement of poultry and poultry by-products within and out of the country while the majority of unvaccinated backyard poultry harbouring sub-clinical infectious viruses pose threat by dissemination of highly infectious viruses even in presence of stringent biosaftey measures.The various virus diseases which have emerged in the recent past include very virulent infectious bursal disease (IBD), reoviral infection associated with stunted chicks syndrome and viral arthritis/tenosynovitis, inclusion body hepatitis – hydropericardium syndrome (IBH-HPS), chicken infectious anaemia (CIA). Management of diseases in poultry plays a pivotal rote for the progress of the industry. The changed disease scenario in Indian poultry flocks with complexities in their pathogenesis and resulting economic losses have put a challenge before the Avian Diseases specialists to address the diseases problems in commercial poultry flocks with modified approaches based on newer concepts with favourable results in the area of bio-security, Preventive health coverage, diagnosis and immuno-prophylaxisis. Molecular biology based techniques have been used very commonly for the detection, differentiation and characterization of virus avian pathogens in the recent past. Considering the economical impact of the above emerging diseases, thorough monitoring, precaution and control is desired. Apart from the diseases which have in the country during the recent past, there are few diseases which have been reported in the neighbouring countries. Biosecurity, sero- monitoring and appropriate restriction on poultry trade are some of the measures that needs to be taken.