ERODE: Shops in Nanjaiuthukuli were shut on Sunday after 84 employees of a private animal feed manufacturing unit tested positive for the coronavirus.
According to sources, an employee of the unit tested positive on April 12 following which 45 of his contacts were tested. Of them, 10 persons tested positive on April 14. After this, all 700 employees at the unit were tested and 73 members tested positive on April 17. All those who tested positive belong to one unit. Migrant workers form the majority of the workforce, sources said.
A 10-member medical team has now been stationed at the company. Employees who tested positive are being treated at a private hospital in Nasiyanur while those who tested negative have been advised home quarantine.
The dispatch of products from the factory was stopped on Thursday and the facility will remain shut till Monday for sanitization. "We are looking into whether Covid-19 can spread through the products sent out by the company. We will hold a talk with the management on Monday," said District Collector S Kathiravan.
As news spread, shopkeepers in the locality staged a protest demanding that no lorries be allowed into the factory. "A few lorries brought raw materials but we sent them back. We explained the situation to the shopkeepers after which they dispersed," said a police officer. Meanwhile, the district administration received 8,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines on Sunday. The next consignment of vaccines is expected to arrive in two days, said health officials.