After Asiatic lions test COVID-positive in Hyderabad, Punjab closes zoos till May 31

The Economic Times | May 08, 2021
According to reports, earlier, lions and tigers had tested positive for COVID-19 in zoos in Barcelona (Spain) and Bronx in the US.

Days after eight Asiatic lions in the Hyderabad zoo tested positive for COVID-19, authorities in Punjab announced that all zoos and wildlife sanctuaries in the state will remain closed till May 31 as a precautionary measure.

Zoo officials said animals were being closely monitored.

Days after eight Asiatic lions in the Hyderabad zoo tested positive for COVID-19, authorities in Punjab announced that all zoos and wildlife sanctuaries in the state will remain closed till May 31 as a precautionary measure.

Zoo officials said animals were being closely monitored.

At Mahendra Chaudhary Zoological Park, popularly known as Chhatbir Zoo, about 20 km from here and spread over 505 acres, officials said the animals were being closely monitored.

On Tuesday, the CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology said that eight Asiatic lions in the Hyderabad zoo have tested positive for COVID-19.

It said the animals must have got the infection through the zoo-keeping staff.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had said the infected animals were behaving normally.

According to reports, earlier, lions and tigers had tested positive for COVID-19 in zoos in Barcelona (Spain) and Bronx in the US.