Delhi Police personnel catch people driving without masks. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna) People travelling alone in private or commercial four wheelers will no longer need to wear masks, the Delhi Government said following a recent court hearing.
The decision came two days after the Delhi High Court questioned the government’s order that mandates wearing masks inside cars and called it “absurd”. The court said that the DDMA should look at several orders issued while relaxing Covid-19 protocols.
The matter was then discussed during Friday’s meeting. “The Covid-19 positivity rate has gone down substantially and a majority of the population has been vaccinated. Therefore, the DDMA after examining all the relevant facts related to the issue of penal provisions for not adhering to the covid protocol of wearing of mask at public places, decided that, in relation to the clause 3(h) (c) whereby not wearing of face mask/cover in all public places has been made an offence, the penalty under this provision of the said notification will not be applicable to a lone person in a self-driven four wheeler vehicles,” the order issued by Delhi Health and Family Welfare department read.
Officials said that the order has been circulated to all district magistrates.
“We have issued the order to all the concerned executive magistrates and SDMs. All of them have been asked to brief the civil defence volunteers and district officials on challan duty about the new order and not issue fines to people alone in their vehicles,” a senior District Magistrate, who did not wish to be named, said.
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