Prosecutions for mask, distancing violations drop from Oct-Nov peak

Experts have attributed to the steady spike in Delhi’s caseload to increased gatherings and poor adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour such as mask discipline and social distancing.

Prosecutions by the police and district administrations for violations of Covid-19 norms have dropped in the Capital to a fraction of the fines issued during the peak of the infection’s third wave in October-November last year, according to police and government data, even as the city’s Covid-19 graph inches upwards.

Crowds at a weekly market in Pandav Nagar on Wednesday, even as the Capital recorded its highest single-day case spike since January 6, adding 536 new infections. ( Raj K Raj/HT PHOTO)

Experts have attributed to the steady spike in Delhi’s caseload to increased gatherings and poor adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour such as mask discipline and social distancing.

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Between March 1 and 15, only 130-160 people in the city were fined a day for violating mask norms in public, a sharp fall from October and November last year, when the police fined nearly 2,300 people a day.

During that period, Delhi was in the middle of the third wave of the Covid-19 outbreak, recording a daily average of 3,451 new cases in October and 6,122 infections in November.

That surge coincided with Diwali, a period when crowds thronged markets in the city with little regard for Covid-19 safeguards, even as the police and administration ramped up prosecutions and fines.

On November 11, for instance, when infections touched a single-day peak of 8,593, the Delhi Police fined 2,403 for not wearing masks or wearing them improperly.

In November, on average, the police prosecuted nearly 2,000 persons for the offence every day.

In the first 15 days of November last year, at least 40 people were fined a day for violating distancing norms. In the past week, however, only eight people were fined for this office.

Delhi on Wednesday added 536 new cases of the infection, the highest single-day spike January 6.

Fines issued by the state government, through district teams, have also reduced significantly. Between January 1 and 15, government teams caught 20,970 persons for not wearing masks, a number that fell to 18,728 in the next fortnight. Fewer people were caught in February. Between February 1 and 15, the Delhi government had fined 13,148 people for the offence, which dropped to 9,016 between February 16 and February 28.

But while there are photographs of people roaming without masks or violating social distancing norms, showing lax enforcement, district administration and Delhi Police officials have said they have increased prosecution in the last 15 days. Spokespersons of the Delhi government did not respond to requests for comment.

Data shared by the government shows that there were 20,386 fines issued between March 1 and 15. During the same fortnight, police have fined 2,227 persons.

Till date, the police have fined 520,650 people for not wearing masks while Delhi government teams fined 398,496 people.

District administration officials admitted that people had let their guards down.

At least five district magistrates said they have now stepped up measures to check for violations, in light of the rise of cases in the city.

Isha Khosla, North Delhi district magistrate, said, “We have been issuing 200-300 fines a day. But with the rise in cases, we have stepped up measures to build awareness regarding precautionary measures. We have also increased the number of monitoring teams from 14 to 21.”

Another district magistrate, who did not wish to be named, said, “On average, we are issuing nearly 150 fines every day. We are also focussing on educating people and telling them to follow all precautionary measures.”

The Delhi Police also said they have increased prosecution on the ground.

Deputy commissioner of police Chinmoy Biswal said,” Our squads are patrolling markets and crowded areas like railway stations and public parks to prosecute those who are not adhering to the rules. We ensure that if there is more than one person travelling in a car, they’re all wearing masks. All district DCPs have been directed to intensify the prosecutions in their respective areas and ensure no tolerance towards such violations,” Biswal said.

Currently, the fine for not adhering to mask norms or violating social distancing measures is ₹2,000.

Experts warned people against letting their guards down.

Dr GC Khilnani, chairman of the PSRI institute of Pulmonary, Critical care and Sleep medicine, said, “There is a definite surge not just in several states across the country but Delhi too... There has been an uptick in cases in the last 15-20 days. At my hospital, one ward that had been declared Covid-19 free was again converted into a special Covid facility. People should not be complacent.”

A senior Delhi Police officer, who asked not to be named, said, “Since the pandemic, our personnel have been on the roads and enforced Covid-appropriate behaviour. If you compare our data with that of any agency, even those outside Delhi, we have taken more action that anyone. Now that Covid-19 cases are increasing, we will increase prosecution and ensure people follow the rules.”