Vandalur Zoo in Chennai closed as 80 employees test positive for COVID-19

The Arignar Anna Zoological Park, popularly known as the Vandalur Zoo, has been closed after 80 staff members tested positive for Covid-19.

Confirming the news, V Karunapriya, the director of the zoo said, ‘We had organised RT-PCR tests for our workers on Thursday because of the rapid rise in Covid-19 cases across the state. The zoo keepers are in close proximity to the animals. The results came back on Saturday and around 80 people have tested positive’. She noted that the individuals are asymptomatic and are being treated.

The Vandalur Zoo will be closed until January 31. It was also said that the matter will be evaluated on January 31 and a suitable decision will be made after that.

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On Saturday, Tamil Nadu reported 23,989 new cases and 11 fatalities. This brings the total number of cases documented to 29,15,948 so far, with 36,967 deaths. Chennai recorded 8,989 instances out of the total. Covid-19 restrictions have been implemented by the Tamil Nadu government, which include a night curfew every day and a total lockdown every Sunday.