Twenty new coronavirus cases were reported in the Siliguri Municipal Corporation area on Monday, taking the total number of patients across north Bengal to around 1,100.

Siliguri MLA Asok Bhattacharya whose swab sample was taken on Sunday has tested negative for the pathogen.

The new Covid-19 patients in Siliguri are in localities like Subhashpally, Nabagram, Tikiapara, Ghogomali, Chayanpara, Samarnagar, Maharaj Colony, Sevoke Road, Bagrakote, Jadavpally, Srawannagar, Bhupendranagar and Darjeeling More, said sources.

“All necessary precautions would be taken in the areas concerned,” said an official of the Darjeeling district health department.

The rise in the number of patients has made the district administration close down the Siliguri Regulated Market, the largest wholesale trade hub of fish, vegetables and fruits in north Bengal.

Sushanta Roy, the officer on special duty deputed by the state health department for Covid-19 management in north Bengal, said three separate hospitals would be built in Jalpaiguri district for asymptomatic Covid-19 patients.