Rudrapur, May 20 -- A high alert has been issued in the Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) and Nainital High Altitude Zoo following the deaths of two tigers due to bird flu (H5N1) in zoos located in Gorakhpur and Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. In response, the forest department in Uttarakhand's Kumaon region has intensified preventive measures to protect its captive big cats, including tigers and leopards housed in rescue centres and the Nainital zoo. The alert comes after a two-year-old tigress named Shakti died at Gorakhpur Zoo on May 7. A subsequent analysis of viscera samples by the National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases, Bhopal, confirmed the cause of death as H5N1 bird flu. A second tiger death due to the same virus was reported on May 15 in Kanpur Zoo, raising serious concerns among forest officials across the region. "We were already on high alert after the Gorakhpur case and were enforcing strict protocols in Nainital Zoo and the Ranibagh rescue centre. After the Kanpur incident, we've further ramped up safety measures," said Mamta Chand, Sub-Divisional Forest Officer (SDO), Nainital, adding, "Our veterinary staff are conducting regular health check-ups and closely monitoring all bird species in the zoo." In Kumaon region, big cats are housed in the Dhela Rescue Centre inside CTR, the Ranibagh Rescue Centre, and the GB Pant High Altitude Zoo in Nainital. These facilities currently shelter 16 tigers and 24 leopards. Dr Dushyant Sharma, Senior Veterinary Officer at CTR, said, "Though we have no bird flu cases in our region, we are on high alert. We've begun sanitisation and screening at the Dhela Rescue Centre. Staff are required to wear PPE kits while feeding animals, and chicken has been removed from the diet of most animals.."...