KOCHI: Lulu Mall in Kochi, Kerala's biggest retail mall, was closed temporarily till further notice on Wednesday after authorities declared the Kalamassery Municipality area (Division 34), under which it falls, a containment zone. Ernakulam district collector S Suhas declared the division a containment zone on Tuesday night.
According to Lulu Mall authorities, it will remain closed till further orders from the district administration. "The reopening date will be declared later after disinfection and discussions with district administration officials," said an official at Lulu.
Without naming Lulu, health officials said 10 employees from a mall in Edapally tested positive for the virus on Tuesday. "We have placed the mall under the scanner and the rest of the employees and other staff working at the mall are placed under quarantine. Since COVID cases are rising in the district, people should be careful while going to public places. Masks and social distancing are the key to contain the spread in public places," said a health official.
"In the last couple of weeks, we have received complaints from the general public that many are not following the COVID norms in public places, especially in malls. We have alerted the police in this regard," added the health official.
Earlier, the district collector had declared Division 34 as a containment zone after 50 persons tested positive for COVID-19 in the district from the area. Following this, Lulu Mall was closed for a few days and was reopened after disinfection.
So far, over 12,000 COVID cases have been reported in Ernakulam district. As many as 3982 persons are undergoing treatment in the district for COVID.