Time to control blatant violation of Covid norms

New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry on Wednesday said blatant violations of Covid-19 norms have been observed in several parts of the country, including hill stations, and asked states and union territories to take action against officials responsible for ensuring compliance to laid down guidelines.

In a letter to all states and UTs, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also said Covid-appropriate behaviour is not being adhered to in public transport and massive crowds are thronging marketplaces, violating social distancing norms. Bhalla emphasised the second wave of Covid is not yet over and there is no room for complacency and everyone must follow Covid-appropriate behaviour. He said that with the decline in the number of active cases, states and UTs have started reopening economic activities in a gradual manner but the process of relaxing restrictions should be carefully calibrated.

During the periods of low positivity, efforts must be stepped up to prevent any probable future surge, he said. "However, blatant violations of Covid norms have been observed in several parts of the country, especially in public transport and at hill stations. Massive crowds are also thronging the market places, violating norms of social distancing," he said. The consequent increase in the 'R'-factor (reproduction number) in some of the states is a matter of concern, Bhalla said. The 'R'-factor indicates the speed at which the infection is spreading in the country. An 'R'-factor below 1 indicates that each infected individual is on average passing on the disease to less than one person. "You may be aware that any increase in 'R' factor above 1.0 is an indicator of spread of Covid-19," he said in the letter.