Mumbai civic body shuts restaurant after 10 of 35 staff test positive for Covid-19

The infected 10 staff members were shifted to Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) jumbo facility and high-risk contacts of the positive patients were traced and quarantined in an slum rehabilitation authority (SRA) building in Jogeshwari.

After 10 of a total of 35 employees working at a restaurant in Andheri tested positive for Covid-19 earlier this week, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has shut down the restaurant. The staffers tested positive for the disease during a routine test drive conducted by BMC ward office.

A health worker collects swab sample of a resident. (HT FILE)

The infected 10 staff members were shifted to Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) jumbo facility and high-risk contacts of the positive patients were traced and quarantined in an slum rehabilitation authority (SRA) building in Jogeshwari which has been temporarily turned into a Covid care centre (CCC1) by BMC.

BMC in a statement issued on Friday said, “Ten staff of Radha Krishna restaurant, SV Road, Andheri (West) tested positive for Covid-19. All 10 have been shifted to BKC Jumbo Covid Centre.”

A civic official said, “After the 10 employees tested positive, BMC instructed the restaurant to shut down and sanitise the premises.” The restaurant was asked to hire new staff before reopening. BMC teams will test the new staff of the restaurant as well.

Following the surge in Covid-19 cases in the city since mid-February, municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal directed all ward officers to conduct inspections at restaurants, bars and eateries in the city. BMC also decided to ramp up testing, following which civic staff at the ward level began testing commercial establishments across the city.