With rising cases of Covid-19 and related deaths in Delhi over the past two weeks, the South Delhi district has made the wearing of face masks in all public places mandatory and said a fine of Rs 500 will be imposed on violators. The South Delhi district magistrate has formed three teams for enforcement of wearing face masks in public places.
As per the order issued by the south Delhi district, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has noted that the positivity rate of Covid-19 infection has increased in Delhi over the past fortnight.
"The DDMA after examining all the relevant facts related to the issue of penal provisions for not adhering to Covid-19 protocol of wearing of mask at public places, decided that, in relation to the clause 3(h)(c) whereby not wearing of face mask/cover in all public places has been made an offence, a fine of Rs 500 for not wearing of face mask/cover in all public places in Delhi will be imposed," the order said.
The fine will not be applicable to persons travelling together in private four-wheelers, it said. The South Delhi District Magistrate has formed three teams for enforcement of wearing face masks in public places.
The teams will work under the supervision of tehsildars from the concerned sub-divisions who will monitor the enforcement exercise and report on a daily basis the number of challans issued to the Coordination Branch of the district, it said.
Each team will comprise 15 civil defence volunteers besides the district officials to visit public places such as markets. Strict compliance of Covid protocol will be enforced in view of the spike in infections, said South East district magistrate Isha Khosla. “We will ensure that Covid-appropriate behaviour is followed at crowded places such as markets, which are attracting more crowds due to festivals,” she said. Enforcement teams are being formed and their number will be increased if needed. The number of teams in the sub divisions depends on need at the ground, it is 4-5 at present, she added.
As per data of the Delhi Government’s Health Department, more than 19,760 Covid-19 cases have been recorded in Delhi from August 1-10. Besides, there has been a nearly 50 per cent rise in the number of containment zones in the city during this period.
Earlier this week, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the Government was keeping a close watch on the situation and would take all the steps needed. He, however, said despite the rise in Covid cases there was no cause for panic as most new infections were mild in nature.
In April, however, as the number of Covid-19 cases started rising, the DDMA decided to bring back the fines. However, the implementation of the mandate has been lax since then.