Coimbatore Corporation’s crackdown on COVID-19 norm violators resumes

COIMBATORE: With the district witnessing a surge in the number of new Covid-19 cases, the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has resumed its drive to penalise members of the public who fail to comply with the preventive measures.

Coimbatore recorded 63 fresh Covid-19 cases on Wednesday, 52 on Thursday and 51 on Friday. Since the numbers were dynamic, the officials said they have started inspecting commercial establishments to keep tabs on compliance to mask-wearing and physical distancing norms.

Several new teams have been formed to monitor compliance and the drive would identify violators and penalise them, said sources. According to the State government's SOP, a violator without a face mask would be fined Rs 200, while a fine of Rs 500 may be imposed for not following social distancing norms.

On Friday, the Corporation fined 184 people for not wearing face masks and collected Rs 36,800, collectively. Similarly, four shops were penalised for violating norms. On Thursday, a higher official in the city corporation said Rs 45,200 was collected from 312 violators who failed to follow the Covid-19 guidelines while stepping out.

It is to be noted that the drive was put on hold a few months ago after the district's Covid-19 numbers started to dip significantly. Alongside this, the flying squads formed to oversee and implement the drive in public places were also withdrawn.