Officials at Mumbai station struggle to enforce Covid norms amid fresh surge in Maharashtra

On a single day, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) collected over Rs 32 lakh as a fine from more than 16,000 people for not wearing masks at public places.

Amid the worsening coronavirus situation in Maharashtra, wearing a face mask was made mandatory for all rail commuters. Not just this, a dedicated team of 300 marshals have been deployed to ensure that no Covid rule is violated.

India Today TV did a ground zero check and found that many people at a Mumbai station were not wearing masks. Like any other day, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus remained crowded with people converging at ticket counters and platforms. Besides, there were clean-up marshal holding receipts and also the railway police with mikes to relay safety messages.

"Sir, I don`t understand whether people don`t understand the situation or don`t want to understand. Even educated people don`t wear masks. I have been here since 11 am till 2 pm and I have caught 20 people," said a cleanup marshal.

When asked why people didn`t wear masks, the clean-up marshal said, "They give strange excuses -- like they say, "I had it just now, but can`t find it", "I took it down for a minute because I was suffocating", "it fell so can`t put it back", etc."

The marshals said it was only when the train arrives at the platform, that many people begin to adjust or put on their masks.

"Going in the crowd and catching people isn`t possible. So we wait from a distance and click pictures and then approach them. For many, it is life as usual. We try to explain to them that they haven`t put on their mask properly but for how long can you explain when one doesn`t want to understand."

Another marshall said there is no social distancing is being followed at ticket counters and that the officials focus on people who are not wearing masks.

Meanwhile, a commuter caught by the marshal said that the clean-up marshals were only harassing the people.

"They catch the weak and don`t bother to catch who is strong. This is a scam to loot money and nothing else. If there is a problem, then why is the public allowed to travel," he said.

Central Railway CPRO Shivaji Sutar said, "Marshals have been deputed by the municipality. We are coordinating with them to take action against maskless travellers. An intensive ticket checking drive has been launched by Railways to take action against ticketless and irregular travellers. Regular announcements have been done to create awareness."

In the last 10 months, the BMC has collected more than Rs 31 crore as a fine. The data released on February 19, 2021, showed that over months, a total of 15,71,679 people have been fined and a total amount of Rs 31,79,43,400 has been collected.

The BMC has set itself the target to catch 25,000 such people daily who don`t wear a face mask.