New Delhi: With Covid cases and the positivity rate rising in Delhi, the district officials have started forming teams to strictly enforce the mask mandate and issue a fine of ₹ 500 to violators, officials said. The district magistrates have been instructed to ensure that the laxity that had set in due to reduction in cases is corrected and wearing masks in public places is strictly enforced, a senior Revenue department officer said. The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has noted that the positivity rate of Covid infection has increased in Delhi over the past fortnight, according to an order issued by the South Delhi district.
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The DDMA after examining all the relevant facts related to the issue of penal provisions for not adhering to Covid 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 ₹ 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.
Also Read: Delhi Reports Nearly Three-Fold Rise In Covid Deaths In August Against Last 10 Days Of July
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.
Delhi on Wednesday (August 10) reported eight deaths due to coronavirus- the highest in nearly 180 days, according to data shared by the health department here. The city on Wednesday reported 2,146 new Covid cases with a positivity rate of 17.83 per cent.
On Tuesday, Delhi had reported 2,495 new coronavirus cases with a positivity rate of 15.41 per cent and seven fatalities.
On Saturday, Delhi recorded 2,311 COVID-19 cases with a positivity rate of 13.84 per cent and one fatality.
There were 1,372 cases and six deaths on Sunday, as the case positivity rate rose to 17.85 per cent- the highest since January 21, it said.
Also Read: COVID-19 Cases Are Mild But Underreported, Says A Senior Doctor From Indraprastha Apollo Hospital
The number of fresh cases has been above 2,000 in the past one week. It was 2,419 on Friday, 2,202 on Thursday, and 2,073 on Wednesday.
The number of active Covid cases in Delhi stands at 8,205, down from 8,506 the previous day. As many as 5,549 patients are in home isolation, the bulletin said.
Earlier this week, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that the government was keeping a close watch on the situation and would take all the steps needed.
He, however, said that despite the rise in Covid cases there was no cause for panic as most new infections were mild in nature.
Also Read: Children Getting COVID-19 Reinfections, Other Seasonal Illness: Expert
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
NDTV – Dettol have been working towards a clean and healthy India since 2014 via the Banega Swachh India initiative, which is helmed by Campaign Ambassador Amitabh Bachchan. The campaign aims to highlight the inter-dependency of humans and the environment, and of humans on one another with the focus on One Health, One Planet, One Future – Leaving No One Behind. It stresses on the need to take care of, and consider, everyone’s health in India – especially vulnerable communities – the LGBTQ population, indigenous people, India’s different tribes, ethnic and linguistic minorities, people with disabilities, migrants, geographically remote populations, gender and sexual minorities. In wake of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the need for WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) is reaffirmed as handwashing is one of the ways to prevent Coronavirus infection and other diseases. The campaign will continue to raise awareness on the same along with focussing on the importance of nutrition and healthcare for women and children, fight malnutrition, mental wellbeing, self care, science and health, adolescent health & gender awareness. Along with the health of people, the campaign has realised the need to also take care of the health of the eco-system. Our environment is fragile due to human activity, which is not only over-exploiting available resources, but also generating immense pollution as a result of using and extracting those resources. The imbalance has also led to immense biodiversity loss that has caused one of the biggest threats to human survival – climate change. It has now been described as a “code red for humanity.” The campaign will continue to cover issues like air pollution, waste management, plastic ban, manual scavenging and sanitation workers and menstrual hygiene. Banega Swasth India will also be taking forward the dream of Swasth Bharat, the campaign feels that only a Swachh or clean India where toilets are used and open defecation free (ODF) status achieved as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014, can eradicate diseases like diahorrea and the country can become a Swasth or healthy India.
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