Hyderabad, Feb. 22 -- To alleviate bird flu fears in Hyderabad, several free food melas were set up to distribute chicken and egg dishes, raising awareness over the safety of consuming avian meat.

Scores of people outside the centres distributing free food in various places across Hyderabad.

Aside from Hyderabad, similar melas were held in Andhra Pradesh's Guntur district.

According to local reports, an unexpected massive positive response from the crowd forced the organisers to shut the venue doors. Thousands of people gathered to enjoy the freshly prepared free food across the various locations in Hyderabad.

The spike in avian influenza in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and part of Telangana has led to a drop in chicken and egg prices ...