COVID-19: How, the 65 acre Koyambedu market became a super spreader

Chennai, May 05: Nearly all the 122 positive cases reported in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu on Monday can be traced to the 65 acre Koyambedu market in Chennai.

The wholesale market attracts people from all over Tamil Nadu who come to sell their produce. Now, this market has become the super spreader, as a result of which many districts have been pushed back into the red and orange zones.

Many people from Cuddalore to Dindigul who visited the market have started testing positive. The test results of 450 more still awaited. On Monday 49 people from Villupuram had tested positive while on Sunday the number stood at 33.

As a result of this, the administration is likely to classify, Cuddalore, Tenkasi and Dindigul as red zones. It may be recalled that these three were among the 14 districts that had moved from red to orange zones last week.

The administration has now got a Herculean task ahead. The district administrations have called on people who visited the market to come forward and get tested. Meanwhile tracing and screening is also being done.

Meanwhile, two leaden who travelled in a truck carrying watermelons from Koyambedu have tested positive. In Coimbatore, 28 persons with a travel history to the market have been traced. Similarly, 43 persons with a travel history to the market have also been traced in Nilgiris.

Even in the districts of Ariyalur and Perambalur, the numbers which remained at single digits have shot up. In Ariyalur, the number shot from 8 to 34, while in Perambalur it went up from 9 to 36. All these cases have been linked to the market.