After a video showed a huge crowd gathered inside the famous clothing store 'Kumaran Silks' in T. Nagar, the shop was sealed by the Greater Chennai Corporation officials on Tuesday for violating the lockdown and social distancing protocols amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The video, which was apparently recorded on October 18, surfaced online soon after and went viral. After reviewing the video, the city corporation officials inspected the store the following day and sealed it earlier today. The appalling clip shows people standing in close proximity to one another with hardly anyone wearing face masks. "They didn’t follow social distancing on October 18. We levied a penalty on them that day too. However, after the video went viral, we checked the shop again. They didn't follow Covid rules again. So we locked and sealed the shop. This is like a warning to all shops. We are planning to hold a meeting with all shop owners ahead of the festive season to follow Covid protocols," a Chennai Corporation official reportedly said.

Nearly 7 lakh cases of Covid-19 have been reported in Tamil Nadu, of which Chennai alone has recorded close to 2 lakh cases. 10,600 in TN succumbed to the illness. On Monday, the state registered 3536 new cases of the virus and 885 fresh cases were reported in Chennai.

This video of a big crowd of saree shoppers inside Chennai’s famous Kumaran Silks in T.Nagar has forced a shutdown for violation of Covid19 rules. pic.twitter.com/SvrdAlKJZV

— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) October 20, 2020

A shop in Tnagar has been #locked and #sealed today, since they allowed overcrowding & didn’t follow the COVID-19 safety protocols. Other such shops, which don’t follow the protocols shall be sealed too. Shop owners & public are requested to strictly follow safety protocols.#GCC pic.twitter.com/MncKIWxfIG

— Greater Chennai Corporation (@chennaicorp) October 20, 2020