With the youth continue to defy the lockdown in the wake of COVID – 19 scare and roam around freely on bikes despite repeated appeal from all quarters, the police have seized 798 two-wheelers so far in Tirunelveli, Tenkasi and Kanniyakumari districts, besides registering cases against 826 violators.
Even though the Union Government has declared nationwide 21-day lockdown to check community transmission following COVID – 19 threat, people can be seen everywhere along the arterial roads of Tirunelevli and Palayamkottai moving around on bikes. Though the Tirunelveli City police have so far registered 65 cases against the violators, no vehicle was seized. Naturally, the police’s ‘soft approach’ has not deterred them from coming out of their houses on bikes.
However, the Tirunelveli Rural police and the law-enforcers of Tenkasi and Kanniyakumari districts register cases against the violators and seize their bikes. Of this, Kanniyakumari district police, led by Superintendent of Police K. Shreenath, have become the trendsetter by seizing 660 vehicles so far ever since the lockdown came into force. In the past 24 hours that ended at 6 a.m. on Monday, the Kanniyakumari police have confiscated 176 bikes and registered cases against 197 persons, who violated the lockdown restrictions.
The Tirunelveli Police, on instructions from Superintendent of Police Om Prakash Meena, have seized 149 bikes so far and registered 240 cases against 340 violators, who were just roaming around unnecessarily.
The Tenkasi police have so far seized 115 vehicles besides registering 40 cases against 43 persons. Superintendent of Police Suguna Singh, on whose instructions the vehicles are being seized, has ordered his subordinates to intensify the crackdown during this week to ensure cent per cent compliance.
Meanwhile, 70 members of Tamil Nadu Disaster Response Force arrived here on Monday to be deployed under all police stations in the city.
“Each police station will have six persons from TNDRF personnel who will evacuate the patients if anyone is found to be in inaccessible areas where the vehicles cannot be taken,” the police said.
The Tirunelveli City Police took-out COVID – 19 awareness rally around Palayamkottai Market and South Bazaar areas on Monday and distributed masks to the public who came out without the protective gear.
When the police came to know about 30 north Indians, who were selling toys, got stranded in a lodge in Tirunelveli Junction without food, Deputy Commissioner S. Saravanan and Tirunelveli Junction Police Station Inspector Periyasamy disbursed food and relief materials to them.
