Vandalur Zoo near Chennai has been closed to visitors for two days after avian influenza was confirmed in aquatic birds that died at the facility, with the administration beginning cage cleaning, site-wide disinfection and biosecurity measures.
The closure applies today and tomorrow, according to the zoo administration’s statement reported by Dinamalar. The decision follows the deaths of several aquatic birds at the Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Vandalur, in Chennai’s southern suburbs, from late September and the beginning of this month.
The bodies of the dead birds were sent for laboratory examination to the National High Security Animal Diseases Institute in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. The report from the institute confirmed that the birds had died from avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu, according to the report.
In response, the zoo has prohibited visitor entry while preventive work is carried out. The planned measures include cleaning the enclosures used by birds, disinfecting the wider zoo premises and implementing biosecurity procedures, the administration said.
The temporary shutdown places the zoo’s visitor operations behind its animal-health responsibilities. Vandalur Zoo is a major public attraction in the Chennai metropolitan region, but it is also a managed environment where large numbers of animals, staff and visitors share a controlled campus. The closure allows the administration to undertake sanitation work without visitor movement through the affected areas, based on the steps described in the report.
The reported sequence also shows how animal deaths in a zoological facility trigger an institutional response beyond routine maintenance. The zoo administration sent samples for examination at a high-security national animal-disease laboratory before announcing the visitor restrictions and sanitation measures. The confirmation has therefore led to operational changes at the facility, including temporary suspension of public access.
The available report does not specify the number of birds that died, the exact enclosures involved, whether any other species were affected, or when the zoo will reopen after the two-day closure. It also does not provide details of any additional instructions issued to staff or visitors beyond the closure and biosecurity work.
Visitors planning trips to the facility will not be permitted entry during the announced closure. The next operational step is the completion of cleaning, disinfection and biosecurity measures across the zoo, after which the administration’s decision on reopening will determine when regular visitor access resumes.
