87 fined in Dhaka by district admin

Authorities yesterday fined 87 people Tk 21,500 in a total of 85 cases for not using face masks in and outside Dhaka city.

Fifteen mobile courts of the district administration also distributed 1,600 masks among poor people in different areas and conducted awareness programmes, says a press release.

The courts conducted the drives and awareness programmes in five upazilas of Dhaka and Judge court, CMM court, Bahadur Shah park, Secretariat, Motijheel, Jigatola, Khilkhet, Press Club and Jatrabari areas in the capital.

A man named Mizan, who was fined Tk 200 in secretariat area around 2pm, told The Daily Star that he forgot to take a mask while leaving home.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on November 18 said though the intensity of Covid-19 pandemic has declined slightly in the country, it is likely to increase in the upcoming winter. She was replying to lawmakers' queries in parliament during the question-answer session. She sounded warning in reference to opinions expressed by experts.

"A second wave of the pandemic has already started in Europe and America," the premier said.

Noting that extensive preparations have been taken to deal with a possible second wave of the virus, the PM said the government has instructed the authorities concerned to implement "no mask, no service" policy to contain the spread of novel coronavirus during the winter.

"Screening continues at the country's entry points. A 14-day quarantine has been made mandatory for the returnees from abroad. Activities are being carried out according to the action plan adopted for preventing and checking Covid-19," she said.