Fluid situation

Team DT / TNN / Feb 21, 2006, 20:40 IST

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We find out how Delhi is dealing with H5B1 virus...

We find out how Delhi is dealing with H5B1 virus...
To eat or not to eat, that is the question. While veggies would like to point out that the dinner table is a vastly better place if it has no tandoori chicken on it, the die-hard chicken lovers can only shudder in response.
Chicken, they must have, if not their favourite char-grilled 'not-so-safe' variety, then the okayed-by-docs 70 degrees cooked ones.That is what DT discovered when it went to town asking whether fowl is foul or not...
The 'eat' choice

Restaurants are laying out chicken, but only in its hygienic avtar. As Akhil Mathur, marketing manager, Le Meridian, points out, "Our guests are ordering chicken dishes so we have kept them on the menu."
However, everyone is making sure that they keep it safe. As Ketaki Narain from The Oberoi Group says, "We are implementing the WHO's advice regarding the bird flu.
While we have removed raw or partially-cooked eggs from the menu, cooked meat - which is safe to eat - will be served."

Ditto for Maurya where vets are conducting regular checks to ensure that safety is maintained. Informs Vijay Nagpal, executive chef, "We haven't excluded the chicken kormas or curries from our menu, but we are sourcing the chicken from local markets and conducting checks on it."
It's business as usual at other restaurants too. Gourmet Shoppe's Abhishek Gupta says, "People are ordering chicken as always." Lady Luck's Abhimanyu adds, "Till confirmed reports come in, Delhi will keep on digging into its chicken."
Even at the dhabas and roadside joints, chicken remains much in demand. Ravinder Kumar of Kake da Dhaba puts the situation into perspective, "Delhiites and chicken are inseparable.
Despite the flu scare, people are ordering their favourite curries and tikkas." However, there are a few restaurants that have decided to keep chicken away from their menu cards.
Says Mohammed Ilyas of Karim's, "Our daily consumption of chicken used to be 200 kgs, but now we have completely stopped serving chicken dishes because of the flu panic." Adds Lizard Lounge's Neeraj Saraf, "Sales have gone down by 25 per cent."
Keeping it safe
The government, meanwhile, is making sure that it follows 'precaution is better than cure' policy. As RVS Tyagi from MCD's veterinary department says, "Delhi's poultry market at Ghazipur is being watched over by Delhi Agricultural Board.
Doctors have been appointed to check the poultry coming from other states. If flu cases are detected, they will be immediately culled."
Hospitals are also getting into the action mode. Protective gear is being provided and precautions are being taken.
Says Dr Rajesh Pandey of Fortis Hospital, "Any patient who shows symptoms of viral fever or respiratory problems will be reporting to the emergency department."

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