NEW DELHI: North Delhi Municipal Corporation opened its first mask bank at the mayor’s official residence on Lancer Road in Civil Lines on Sunday. Mayor Jai Prakash said 104 banks would be opened — one in each ward — where people will get masks for free to fight novel coronavirus.
Social and religious organisations, along with women’s self-help groups, are being approached to make the model feasible, the mayor said. “We are appealing to all capable organisations to step forward and help the society in this testing time. Anybody can donate masks in these banks,” he added. The civic body also plans to set up mask-dispensing automatic machines in selected commercial areas.
On Sunday, around 500 people took masks from the 24x7 bank, which has got 5,000 masks in donation. “The mayor’s residence remains open all the time. A person can ring the bell and ask for a mask through a dedicated window,” Jai Prakash said.
In view of the recent surge in Covid-19 cases, Delhi government on Thursday quadrupled its Rs 500 fine for not wearing masks in public areas. Anyone flouting this or other social distancing norms such as maintaining social distance or not spitting in the open will have to pay Rs 2,000 as fine.
Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had also called an all-party meeting in which he appealed to every organisation to start distributing masks through their volunteers.