It is ironical that bird flu should deal a crippling blow to the West Bengal countryside shortly after the Government of India declared that the country was free from the scourge. From January 3, when hens and ducks began to die at an alarming rate in Margram village under Rampurhat Block II of Birbhum district in central Bengal, the State was staring at what is possibly the biggest outbreak in India so far of avian influenza caused by the H5N1 virus. West Bengal is the fifth State in the country to have been struck by the virus after Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Manipur. As of January 25, the disease had spread to 39 blocks and four municipalities in 11 districts, killing over 1.3 lakh fowls; a total of 934 teams had culled 10.11 lakh hens and ducks against a target of a little over 21 lakh, and the rate of culling had increased to three lakh birds a day. Almost at the same time as the outbreak in Birbhum, South Dinajpur district in north Bengal also got affected.