News Analysis India

Tag: face mask

  • As Covid cases surge, Punjab government makes face masks mandatory

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH:  In view of a spurt in coronavirus cases, the Punjab government on Saturday made the wearing of face masks mandatory in public places, officials said.

    The advisory was issued by the state home affairs and justice department to all divisional, deputy commissioners, zonal inspector general of police, commissioners of police and civil surgeons in the state.

    It has been observed that many people are not following Covid-appropriate behaviour, specially wearing of masks, according to the advisory.

    “Further, the number of Covid positive cases, positivity rate and hospitalisation are showing an upward trend,” it said.

    The wearing of masks shall be ensured in all educational institutions, government and private offices and indoor/outdoor gatherings, malls, and public places for the prevention of further spread of the virus well-being of every individual, it said.

    Covid-appropriate behaviour like social distancing, respiratory etiquette and no spitting in public places must be followed, it further said.

    Anyone having symptoms of COVID-19 must get tested and follow the established protocol, it added.

    All hospitals, labs, collection centres offering testing for COVID-19 should upload details of tests, including positive and negative results, on COVA Portal of the state government and also intimate the respective district and state COVID-19 cell, it said.

    It further said those due for the second dose and precautionary dose of COVID-19 vaccine must take them at the earliest.

    CHANDIGARH:  In view of a spurt in coronavirus cases, the Punjab government on Saturday made the wearing of face masks mandatory in public places, officials said.

    The advisory was issued by the state home affairs and justice department to all divisional, deputy commissioners, zonal inspector general of police, commissioners of police and civil surgeons in the state.

    It has been observed that many people are not following Covid-appropriate behaviour, specially wearing of masks, according to the advisory.

    “Further, the number of Covid positive cases, positivity rate and hospitalisation are showing an upward trend,” it said.

    The wearing of masks shall be ensured in all educational institutions, government and private offices and indoor/outdoor gatherings, malls, and public places for the prevention of further spread of the virus well-being of every individual, it said.

    Covid-appropriate behaviour like social distancing, respiratory etiquette and no spitting in public places must be followed, it further said.

    Anyone having symptoms of COVID-19 must get tested and follow the established protocol, it added.

    All hospitals, labs, collection centres offering testing for COVID-19 should upload details of tests, including positive and negative results, on COVA Portal of the state government and also intimate the respective district and state COVID-19 cell, it said.

    It further said those due for the second dose and precautionary dose of COVID-19 vaccine must take them at the earliest.

  • Right time to lift mask mandate, but vulnerable groups must take precaution: Experts

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government’s decision to lift all coronavirus-related restrictions including the mask mandate from April 2 was supported by experts on Thursday, but with a caveat that vulnerable groups must continue to take precaution.

    State health minister Rajesh Tope earlier in the day announced that all restrictions will be lifted from Saturday, and wearing mask will not be compulsory.

    Dr Anurag Agrawal, Director of the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Delhi, said there was no point in wearing masks outdoors now when the infection rate is low.

    “It is a good time to do away with masks,” Dr Agrawal told PTI.

    He, however, added that wearing masks indoors should still be practiced, especially by the vulnerable population.

    The Delhi Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) has also announced that there will be no fine for not wearing masks in public places in the national capital.

    Dr Raman Gangakhedekar, former head scientist of the Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases Division at the Indian Council of Medical Research, said, “I will not say that this is an improper decision (to make masks voluntary).”

    Dr Gangakhedekar, who was the face of the ICMR when the first wave of coronavirus hit the country in 2020, said currently the rate of infection is very low and the decision has been taken in that context.

    He too stressed that masks are still necessary for people whose immunity is low.

    This group comprises senior citizens, people with comorbidities and those who have not taken both the doses of coronavirus vaccine, he said.

    Dr Dileep Mavlankar, Director of the Ahemdabad-based Public Health Foundation of India, said the time is right to withdraw the mask mandate as infection rate is low and people have developed immunity due to infections and vaccination.

    “But people with symptoms must continue to wear masks,” he cautioned.

    Dr Trupti Gilada, Infectious Diseases Specialist, Masina Hospital said the vaccination status of Maharashtra is high with over 90 per cent of the population having COVID-19 antibodies either due to previous infection or immunisation.

    “There have been no repercussions in the form of rising cases over the last few weeks despite festivities, opening up of all public spaces, weddings and elections. We will continue to see a few cases here and there, most of which will be mild,” Gilada said.

    This is exactly what it means for a disease to become endemic, like other diseases like influenza, she said.

    “It was just about time to return to normalcy and removing compulsory masking is the last leg in that direction, a step that has been well calculated and deliberated upon,” she said.

    But Dr Harish Chafle, Senior Consultant – Pulmonology and Critical Care at Global Hospitals in Parel, Mumbai, had a different take.

    Mumbai was and will be the hotspot of COVID-19, simply because it hosts a large number of people from different cities and countries, he said.

    Despite the fact that wearing a mask was always mandatory, not many followed the regulation strictly.

    This was the situation when rules were absolutely compulsory, he pointed out.

    “Now, imagine what would happen if the government decides to completely lift the rules. There will be chaos among people,” he said.

    “With overcrowded local trains and other modes of transportation, going mask-free in Mumbai so soon will be a bad decision, especially when we haven’t achieved 100 per cent vaccination,” he said.

    As many as 1,225 new coronavirus cases were reported in the country during the day.

    The active case tally in the country dipped to 14,307.

    The country’s daily positivity rate stood at 0.20 per cent.

  • Centre to end all COVID-19 containment measures except face mask rule from March 31

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: In view of the continuous dip in coronavirus cases, the home ministry has decided to end its all COVID-19 containment measures from March 31, two years after their implementation following the outbreak of the pandemic.

    However, wearing of face mask and maintaining social distancing norms will continue as earlier.

    The Central government had on March 24, 2020 issued for the first time orders and guidelines under the Disaster Management Act, (DM Act) 2005 for the containment of COVID-19 in the country and these have been modified on various occasions.

    In a communication to the chief secretaries of all states, Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla said that over the last 24 months, significant capacities have been developed for various aspects of management of the pandemic, such as diagnostics, surveillance, contact tracing, treatment, vaccination, hospital infrastructure.

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    Also, the general public now has much higher level of awareness on the COVID-appropriate behavior, he said.

    The states and Union Territories have also developed their own capacities and systems and implemented their detailed specific plans for managing the pandemic, he said, adding over the last seven weeks or so there has been a steep decline in the number of cases.

    The total caseload in the country stands at 23,913 only (on March 22) and the daily positivity rate has declined to 0.28 per cent, he said. It is also worth mentioning that with the combined efforts, a total of 181.56 crore vaccine doses have been administered, he said.

    “After taking into consideration the overall improvement in the situation and preparedness of the Government to deal with the pandemic, National Disaster Management Authority has taken a decision that there may not be any further need to invoke the provisions of the DM Act for COVID containment measures,” the communication said.

    Accordingly, Bhalla said, after the expiry of the existing order on March 31, no further order will be issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

    However, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare advisories on COVID containment measures, including on the use of face mask and hand hygiene, will continue to guide the overall national response to the pandemic, he said.

    However, the Home Secretary said that in view of the nature of the disease, people still need to remain watchful of the situation.

    ALSO READ| Karnataka well-prepared to handle any future COVID wave: Dr K Sudhakar

    He said that whenever any surge in the number of cases is observed, states and UTs may consider taking prompt and proactive action at local level, as advised by the Ministry of Health from time to time. “I would, therefore, advise all the States and UTs to consider appropriately discontinuing issue of orders and guidelines under the DM Act, 2005 for COVID containment measures,” Bhalla said.

    The states and UTs may continue to follow the Standard Operating Measures and advisories that have been or are being issued by the Ministry of Health from time to time for containment measures, vaccination and other related aspects, he said.

  • Face masks halve distance of airborne pathogens’ travel: Study

    Researchers at UCF found that masks reduce the distance airborne pathogens could travel, when speaking or coughing, by more than half compared to not wearing a mask.

  • Maharashtra: Cop attacked by three men for questioning them about not wearing masks; trio held

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Three persons have been arrested for allegedly assaulting a constable in Aurangabad city of Maharashtra after he questioned them about not wearing face masks despite the coronavirus pandemic, police said on Saturday.

    The incident took place on Thursday night at Vasantrao Naik Chowk, CIDCO, where the police constable was posted on duty, an official said.

    “He spotted that the three men were not wearing face masks. He stopped them and questioned them about it, following which a heated argument broke out and later turned into a scuffle,” he said.

    The accused not only verbally abused the constable, but also thrashed him and hit him with a stone, he added.

    The trio, identified as Pratap Jagtap, Akash Kulkarni and Ashutosh Zingorde, were arrested on Friday morning, the police official said, adding that an offence was registered against them under relevant IPC sections.

  • No mask on our premises will attract Rs 500 fine: Southern Railway

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Southern Railway on Saturday said a fine of Rs 500 would be imposed on passengers who do not adhere to COVID-19 standard operating procedures (SOPs) while on a railway station premises or on a train journey.

    In reference to the orders from various state governments on fines for not wearing masks in public places, Southern Railway said the Railway Board has authorised all zonal railways to collect the fine from people not wearing face masks on railway premises, including aboard trains.

    The new rule of the railway comes into immediate effect and extend for six months until further notice, a press release said here.

    A station master or the station manager, Railway Protection Force personnel and an officer not below the rank of ticket collector have been authorised to collect the fines.

    Tamil Nadu, witnessing a surge in COVID-19 infections from March 5, on Friday reported 8,449 new cases and 33 fatalities, pushing the caseload to 9,71,384 and 13,032 deaths.

  • Breathe Easy launches country’s first self-sanitizing face mask

    Corona virus has spread its wings rapidly in the country. Corona cases are increasing continuously in India till now. Until the vaccine comes, the mask is the biggest weapon for the general public, which can protect them from the infection of this dangerous virus. Face masks are mandatory in many states of the country, in this case many companies are launching masks. In this series, Breathe Easy Company has also launched a very special face mask ‘KARBON’. The company claims that the Karbon Face Mask is capable of neutralizing up to 95% of viruses.

    The Breathe Easy Karbon Mask costs just Rs 799. At present, the company has launched it only in black color. This mask has been certified by Nelson Labs. Three layers are given in this mask. The outer layer is a fabric layer that blocks airborne content using biotechnology. The double-night layer further blocks particles present in the air. The third biofabric layer has anti-microbial properties capable of efficiently killing viruses and bacteria.

    The company says that the layer inside the mask is very soft, so that it can be easily applied for a long time. The inner layer of the mask is self-sanitizing and made of high quality yarn cloth. Karbon Mask can be washed 50 times.