The wholesale fish market at the Siliguri Regulated Market was shut for seven days from Friday after some persons associated with the trade had been detected with the novel coronavirus.

The Darjeeling district administration has asked the market committee to keep the fish market close to stem the spread of the disease further, said sources.

“We have received an instruction from the district administration to halt the wholesale trade at the fish market here for the next seven days from Friday,” said Bapi Choudhury, secretary, Siliguri Regulated Market Wholesale Fish Merchants’ Association.

Regular supply of fish will be affected for the next seven days in Siliguri, along with some north Bengal districts and the neighbouring state of Sikkim and certain portions of Assam, because of the closure.

“A stall owner and two others at the fish market were tested positive for Covid-19 a couple of days ago. In the past few days, a number of coronavirus cases, were reported in ward 46 of Siliguri, which is near the market. A number of people who are associated with the market also stay in the same ward,” said a prominent wholesale fish trader.

New cases in Sikkim

Sikkim on Friday recorded the largest single day rise in the number of Covid-19 cases with 14 persons testing positive. The total number of cases is 26 now. However, with two patients having recovered, there are 24 active cases in the state.

All the 14 new patients, including 11 female and three male, are returnees.

They were undergoing quarantine in different institutional facilities in East Sikkim. They have all been admitted to the New STNM Hospital for treatment.