‘This’ state announces a fine of Rs 1 lakh and jail term up to 2 years for not wearing ‘mask’

Ranchi : Jharkhand cabinet on wednesday approved Jharkhand Contagious Disease Ordinance under which penalty up to Rs 1 lakh and a jail term up to 2 years can be imposed against violators for not wearing a mask or spitting in public.

Jharkhand Cabinet yesterday approved Jharkhand Contagious Disease Ordinance under which penalty up to Rs 1 lakh and jail term up to 2 years can be imposed against violators of preventive measures of COVID-19 like not wearing masks in public places & spitting in public.

— ANI (@ANI) July 23, 2020

In view of the surge in coronavirus cases, this steps taken by the Jharkhand Cabinet, although Jharkhand is not the first state to have imposed a fine. Many other states and cities across the country have made wearing face masks compulsory. So far, Jharkhand reported 439 new cases of COVID-19, while three more people died due to the disease, as per the bulletin issued by the state government.

Earlier too the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) increased the fine for not wearing a mask and spitting in public places from Rs 200 to Rs 500. The civic body also announced a penalty of Rs 10,000 for owners of paan shops, if people are caught spitting in its vicinity.

In the first two weeks of July during Unlock-2, the AMC has penalised 1.72 lakh persons and sealed 94 units for violation of wearing masks and social distancing norms. Over Rs 1.52 crore has been collected by the AMC during the period starting from May till July 12.

Kerala also penalising people who don’t wear masks in public. A fine of Rs 200 is imposed by police for first-time offence and for repeat offenders, the fine is upgraded to Rs 5,000. In Wayanad, individuals not wearing masks in public spaces would be charged a fine of Rs 5,000.