The cull will not apply to farms and distribution centers.

Last Saturday some 2,700 chickens were culled when H5N1 subtype, which is deadly to humans, was detected at a market.

Although no cases of human-to-human transmission of H5N1 have yet been reported, scientists fear the virus could mutate into a strain that could pass easily between people, causing a global pandemic.

According to the World Health Organization, avian influenza has so far killed 241 people out of 383 confirmed cases worldwide.