Chennai lion death cloud over West Bengal tourism

KOLKATA: National Tiger Conservation Authority on Monday informed the state chief wildlife warden not to reopen tourism till further orders, indicating no immediate plan of resumption of tourism activities in Bengal tiger reserves and wildlife sanctuaries, which have been suspended since April in the wake of the second wave of the novel coronavirus.
The NTCA’s move came after a lion at Vandalur zoo in Chennai died of suspected Covid-19.A few other lions at the zoo have also tested positive, said the letter issued by NTCA on Monday.
While parks in north Bengal usually shut down in mid-June due to monsoon, Sunderbans Tiger Reserve in south Bengal remains open throughout the year. Tourism is a key livelihood option for villagers living near the tiger reserve. “Since the state government’s restrictions are in place, tiger reserves here are already closed. Before the second wave, when the parks were open, we were not allowing visitors to any watchtower or units inside the tourism zone,” said state’s chief wildlife warden V K Yadav.
“The latest instance of zoo animals getting infected of Covid-19 again indicates the high likelihood of disease transmission from affected human beings to animals. A similar transmission may also happen in tiger reserves,” the NTCA letter stated.
A K Samanta, director of Alipore zoo, which is also closed now, said that all safety protocols were in place and that they were keeping a watch on all animals for any symptom.