THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state police have decided to penalize people who do not wear masks while going out in public places. State police chief Loknath Behera issued an order on Wednesday in this regard.
According to the state police chief, the penalty will be levied under Section 290 of Indian Penal Code which pertains to punishment for public nuisance. The penalty for this offence is Rs 200. However, if a person is found to be repeating the offence, he or she would be fined an amount of Rs 5,000.
Police have taken this step in the wake of relaxation on lockdown restrictions at many places across the state after Covid-19 positive cases have come down. With more shops opening under new circumstances, more people are going out in public as part of work or for shopping. However, majority of there are still reluctant to wear masks. For example, there were relaxation on public movement in Thiruvananthapuram city police limits from April 20 onwards and police started booking people for not wearing masks from April 22. Since then, a total of 595 persons have been booked for not wearing mask in public place.
Cases were registered invoking provisions under Kerala Epidemic Diseases Ordinance. But this move failed to evoke any positive response from the people as a result of which the department has decided to impose stricter measures like levying penalties.
DGP Behera said in his statement that people are free to use masks made of any type of garment, including home-made masks, handkerchiefs or towels to cover the face.
Meanwhile, there has been complaints from various corners that police levied penalties from people even before the state police chief issued an order in this regard. One such case was reported in Medical College police station limits in the capital city in which a person was charged a fine of Rs 1,000 for lockdown violation for allegedly not wearing a mask.
Responding to this issue, Thiruvananthapuram city police commissioner Balramkumar Upadhyay said that this might have happened because the officer involved might not have clarity about the measures to be taken. The issue would be looked into and appropriate corrective measures would be taken, he said.
According to the state police chief, the penalty will be levied under Section 290 of Indian Penal Code which pertains to punishment for public nuisance. The penalty for this offence is Rs 200. However, if a person is found to be repeating the offence, he or she would be fined an amount of Rs 5,000.
Police have taken this step in the wake of relaxation on lockdown restrictions at many places across the state after Covid-19 positive cases have come down. With more shops opening under new circumstances, more people are going out in public as part of work or for shopping. However, majority of there are still reluctant to wear masks. For example, there were relaxation on public movement in Thiruvananthapuram city police limits from April 20 onwards and police started booking people for not wearing masks from April 22. Since then, a total of 595 persons have been booked for not wearing mask in public place.
Cases were registered invoking provisions under Kerala Epidemic Diseases Ordinance. But this move failed to evoke any positive response from the people as a result of which the department has decided to impose stricter measures like levying penalties.
DGP Behera said in his statement that people are free to use masks made of any type of garment, including home-made masks, handkerchiefs or towels to cover the face.
Meanwhile, there has been complaints from various corners that police levied penalties from people even before the state police chief issued an order in this regard. One such case was reported in Medical College police station limits in the capital city in which a person was charged a fine of Rs 1,000 for lockdown violation for allegedly not wearing a mask.
Responding to this issue, Thiruvananthapuram city police commissioner Balramkumar Upadhyay said that this might have happened because the officer involved might not have clarity about the measures to be taken. The issue would be looked into and appropriate corrective measures would be taken, he said.
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