Mumbai: The Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh on Sunday (February 21, 2021) announced that the Mumbai Police can now issue challans to people not wearing a face mask.


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Param Bir Singh took to his official Twitter account to announce the news and said, "Dear Mumbaikars, Mumbai Police is now authorised to issue challans to offenders not wearing a mask too. Every time we fined you for not wearing a helmet or seatbelt it was always to remind you the value of your life & safety. Same for masks. Please take care. You matter to us."



Offenders will have to pay a fine of Rs 200.



This is to be noted that the Maharashtra state has been reporting a surge in COVID-19 confirmed cases over the past few days. In Mumbai, the total number of positive cases has increased to 3.17 lakh, while the active cases rose to 7,276. 




"Almost 90 per cent of the new cases are coming from buildings. Most of them are either asymptomatic or mild and prefer to stay at home, said additional municipal commissioner Suresh Kakani.


Kakani added that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had no plans for a lockdown in Mumbai for now and would instead focus on increased testing and treatment, and strict implementation of face masks in public places.



The BMC on Friday had reportedly penalised 13,592 people for not wearing masks in public places and collected Rs 27.18 lakh as a fine. According to the PTI news agency, the BMC has so far penalised more than 15 lakh people across Mumbai and collected Rs 31.7 crore as a fine. 


Officials have also been directed to increase scrutiny and ensure people comply with the face mask rule.


In trains and local stations, a special squad of 300 officials has been formed to check for compliance by commuters.


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