BHUBANESWAR: The police and squads of the
Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (
BMC) on Saturday swung into action to implement chief minister
Naveen Patnaik’s 14-day mask drive.
The BMC has formed six squads — two each for its three zones — and police have sensitized
personnel manning PCR vans and all patrolling vehicles in police stations to rebuke people not wearing the masks. The squad members are conducting surprise raids at
markets and shops while police are conducting checks at vantage points along the streets of the city.
“We have 500 police personnel engaged in the mask drive. People who don’t wear masks will be penalized. Also, policemen are checking whether the markets are overcrowded. In case they find unnecessary gatherings of people, they have been asked to disperse them with a warning,” said
DCP Uma
Shankar Das.
The tightening of mask enforcement has been done in view of the sudden spike in
Covid cases across the state and more so in the capital city, which has been reporting more than 100 cases daily. Vegetable markets, vending zones, roadside eateries and parks have been witnessing rush as usual as there is no restriction on their opening.
“We have asked the squads not to be lenient on violators. We have sealed six places — four educational institutions, one hostel and the convention centre of a hotel — for violating Covid norms. The squads will go for random checks and penalise violators on the spot,” said BMC nodal officer (Covid management) Suvendu Sahu.
The city airport has been seeing around 10 cases every day. The capital saw a huge surge in cases on Saturday. The BMC has set up RT-PCR test kiosk to screen passengers arriving at the airport on domestic flights. Those found Covid positive are being asked to stay in home isolation. The BMC is keeping their details to monitor their health and isolation.
The capital on Saturday reported 171 fresh cases, taking the total to 33,364. With 32,210 recoveries and 250 deaths, the city has 883 active cases. On Saturday, 53 people recovered. Out of the new cases, 54 have been reported from six clusters.