Telangana CM asks police to fine those not wearing masks

 Telangana | Written by : IANS Updated: Fri, Apr 09, 2021, 10:41 AM

Hyderabad, April (IANS) Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday said a person not wearing a mask in public will be fined Rs 1,000 and asked the police strictly enforce mask-on rule.

The Chief Minister, who review Covid situation in the state at a meeting with ministers and top officials, said that wearing of masks should be enforced strictly to contain the spread of the pandemic.

If the people do not wear masks they should be fined Rs 1,000 per person. He wanted the Director General of Police (DGP) to instruct the police department to enforce this mask rule stringently.

KCR, as Rao is popularly known, urged the people to follow all the Covid guidelines, wear masks, take all precautions, and be alert to contain the spread of Covid. The CM suggested that people in the crowded places like Hyderabad, Rangareddy, and Medchal districts and in corporations and municipalities should be more alert.

The CM participated in the videoconference organised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday. He later held a review meeting with the medical and health officials on the situation arising out of the pandemic.

He instructed the officials concerned to increase the Covid tests in view of the surge in cases. He said all the front-line workers should be vaccinated cent percent. The CM wanted the entire process should be completed in a week.

He spoke to DGP M Mahender Reddy, Principal Secretary (Panchayat Raj) Sandeep Sultania, Principal Secretary (municipal administration and urban development) Arvind Kumar, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) commissioner Lokesh Kumar, and Principal Secretary (Transport) Sri Sunil Sharma over phone. The CM instructed that the staff and employees in these departments should be vaccinated cent percent. The CM also instructed that the vaccination progress should be reported to the CMO every day by the department heads concerned.

The CM urged all those who crossed the age limit of 45 years to get vaccinated.

He said collectors and other district level officers should hold a videoconference and launch a special drive for vaccinations. He said to increase the testing, in all the districts RTPCR tests should be conducted in large numbers in the districts. The CM instructed the officials to make RTPCR test kits available.

The CM instructed the medical and health officials to set up test centres in Gadwal, Wanaparthy, Khammam, Nirmal, Mancherial, Kamareddy, Sangareddy, Medak, Jagtial, Pedapalli, Ramagundam, Bhongir, Jangaon, and Vikarabad.