Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has asked all districts to be on 'high alert' and take preventive measures in the wake of bird flu (H5N8) outbreak in neighboring Kerala, Animal Husbandry Minister Prabhu Chauhan said on Wednesday.

As of now no cases of bird flu have been reported in the state, but officials have been directed to take all preventive measures, he said.

Deputy Directors of the department in districts including Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Mysuru, and Chamarajanagar that shares a border with Kerala have been directed to take preventive measures by holding district-level diseases control committee meetings, along with Deputy Commissioners (DC).

It has also been directed to erect checkpoints in border areas for prohibiting the transportation of poultry and poultry products from Kerala and to allow poultry transport vehicles from the neighboring state only after disinfection /sanitization, a release from the Minister's office said.

Officials have been directed to submit daily reports on the preventive measures taken, to the office of the Deputy Director Poultry Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, it added.

The bird flu has been reported in parts of Alappuzha and Kottayam districts in Kerala, prompting officials to cull over 69,000 birds, including ducks and chicken.

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Lakhimpur Kheri (UP) (PTI): Ten people were killed when a van collided head-on with a truck on the Sisaiya-Lakhimpur national highway on Monday, police said.

The van was going to Sisaiya from Lakhimpur when the accident took place between Unchgaon and Bharehta villages.

Circle Officer of Dhaurahra, Shamsher Bahadur Singh, said all nine passengers travelling in the van and the driver were killed.

District Magistrate of Lakhimpur Kheri Anjani Kumar Singh told reporters that the van collided with a truck coming from the opposite direction, leading to nine casualties on the spot, while one succumbed to injuries at the district hospital.

Circle Officer, Dhaurahra, Shamsher Bahadur Singh told PTI, "Efforts are on to establish the identity of other deceased persons."

The seven of the deceased have been identified as Jaideep Singh (25), Pawan (23), Sohan (21), Ram Goyal (42), Sahajram (35), Pappu (18), all residents of Bahraich district and Adnan Khan (15), a resident of Lakhimpur Kheri district, police said.

Condoling the loss of lives in the accident, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in a post on X, said, "The loss of life in the unfortunate road accident in Lakhimpur Kheri district is deeply distressing and heart-wrenching. My condolences are with the bereaved families."

"I have directed the local administration to provide prompt and adequate assistance to the injured and the victims. I pray to Lord Shri Ram to grant the departed souls a place at His divine feet and to bestow a speedy recovery upon the injured," Adityanath said on X.

Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya and Brajesh Pathak too condoled the loss of lives in the accident.

"The loss of lives resulting from the road accident in Lakhimpur Kheri district is deeply tragic and heart-wrenching. My deepest condolences go out to the bereaved families," Maurya said.