Millennium bug

Permit me the hospitality of your columns to reinforce the interesting and informative editorial of October 24, Go Away Millennium Bug.

Taking into account the teeming millions living higgledy-piggledy in unhygienic conditions with fowl and other animals in households and in markets, it has to be noted that less than five score individuals have been infected with the H5N1 avian influenza virus since 2003; a bug which has proved to be highly pathogenic to fowl, fatal to domestic fowl and infecting free-flying fowl which often show no signs of being infected.

Bird flu is strictly for the birds.

The H5N1 avian virus is endemic in the East and therefore this Millenium Bug will not go away, but with the possibility of a timely vaccine, as noted in the editorial, we may have a good chance to keep the virus at bay.

The US had also prepared a specific vaccine which produced a good response in volunteers, albeit two doses and a possible booster may be required, as against the one-shot yearly flu vaccine now being administered to our people.