Over 50% Chennai residents have not been wearing masks during the pandemic, said Greater Chennai Corporation Commissioner G. Prakash.
The civic body has planned to promote mask wearing among residents, during the festival season, to arrest the spread of COVID-19. “We have identified locations prone to crowding, ahead of the festival season. Teams of civic officials have been formed in Velachery, T. Nagar, Anna Nagar, Purasawalkam and George Town to contain the spread of COVID-19,” he said.
Stressing the need for containment initiatives during the festival season, Mr. Prakash said people have to wear masks and adhere to physical distancing and containment norms for another three months.
Officials have collected fines amounting to over ₹3 crore from violators of COVID-19 safety norms. “We have been imposing fines on violators, without affecting business in commercial areas. We are determined to contain the spread of COVID-19. But we do not want to create hardship among residents and traders. We request people to wear masks and adhere to the rules during the festival season,” he said.
The Corporation has collected the highest amount of fines from zones such as Royapuram that has a large number of commercial establishments. “Civic officials and the police have placed barricades in George Town and T. Nagar to regulate crowding in commercial areas. We are allowing only a limited number of persons inside commercial areas. More barricades will be put up in such areas to prevent crowding,” said another civic official.
According to Corporation data, the fine collected for not wearing masks has been higher in commercial areas. An amount of ₹200 is collected from those not wearing a mask.
