Port Blair, Apr 21
The National Disaster Management Authority
(NDMA) Govt. of India is satisfied that the country is threatened by the spread
of COVID-19, which has been declared as a pandemic by the World Health
Organization (WHO) and has thus considered it necessary to take effective
measures to prevent its spread across the country.
· In exercise of the powers, conferred under
Section 10 (2) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the Union Home Secretary,
in his capacity as the Chairperson, National Executive Committee, issued an
Order dated 14th April, 2020, and subsequent orders dated 16th April and 19th
April, 2020 that the lockdown measures stipulated in the Consolidated
Guidelines of Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for containment of COVID-19
epidemic in the country, will continue to remain in force up to 3rd May, 2020
to contain the spread of COVID - 19 in the Country.
· The consolidated guidelines will not apply in
containment zones, as demarcated by States / Union Territories (UTs)/ District
Administration. If any new area is included in the category of a containment
zone, the activities allowed in that area till the time of its categorization
as a containment zone, will be suspended except for those activities as are
specifically permitted under the guideline of Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare (MoHFW), Government of India.
· In exercise of the powers conferred under
Section 10 (2) of the Disaster Management Act, 2005 the Union Home Secretary,
in his capacity as Chairperson, National Executive Committee, issued directions
to all the Ministers / Departments of Government of India, State / Union
Territory Governments and State / Union Territory Authorities for the strict
implementation of consolidated revised guideline, the Clause 4 (ii) of which
provides that State / UT Governments may impose stricter measures than these
guidelines as per requirement of the local areas.
· In exercise of the powers conferred under
Section 24 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, the Chief Secretary, A&N
Administration, in his capacity as the Chairperson, Union Territory Disaster
Management Executive Committee, issued an order dated 18th April,
2020 directing that;
i. The consolidated revised guidelines shall not
apply to the whole of the South Andaman District in accordance with the
provisions of Clause 2(iii) of the guidelines applicable to Hotspots and
containment zones. The South Andaman District has been declared by the Ministry
of Health & Family Welfare as a Hotspot District with clusters vide DO No.
Z-21020/16/2020-ph dated 15.04.2020.
· National directives for COVID-19 Management
were issued by the MHA as Annexure-I in its Order dated 15th April,
2020 and endorsed by UT Administration vide its order dated 18th
April, 2020 are to be enforced by the District Magistrate through fines and
penal action as prescribed in the Disaster Management Act, 2005. It mandates
the following:
- Compulsory
wearing of face cover in all public places, work places.
- Strict
maintenance of social distancing in Public places, work places and transport,
as per the guidelines of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
- No
gathering of 05 or more persons by the organization / manager of a public
place.
- Spitting
in public spaces shall be punishable with fine.
- Strict ban
on sale of liquor, gutka, tobacco etc.
· Clause 17 of the Consolidated Revised
Guidelines allows movement of the Persons in the following cases:
17(i) Private
vehicles for emergency services, including medical and veterinary care and for
procuring essential commodities. In such cases, one passenger besides the
private vehicle driver can be permitted in the backseat, in case of
four-wheelers, however, in case of two-wheelers, only the driver of the vehicle
is to be permitted.
(ii) All personnel
travelling to place of work and back in the exempted categories as per the
instructions of the State UT local authority.
· As per Section 51(b) of the Disaster
Management Act, 2005, whoever, without reasonable cause refuses to comply with
any direction given by or on behalf of the Central Government or the State
Government or the National Executive Committee or the State Executive Committee
or the District Authority under this Act, shall on conviction be punishable
with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year of with fine or with
both and if such obstruction of refusal to comply with directions results in
loss of lives or imminent danger thereof, shall on conviction be punishable with
imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years.
· Now
therefore,
in exercise of the power conferred under section 51 (b) of the Disaster
Management Act, 2005, Shri Abhishek Dev, District Magistrate, South Andaman
District has prescribed the following fines to be imposed on the violators for
refusing to comply with the guidelines issued by the National Disaster
Management Authority, Government of India.
|
Sl No.
|
Violation
|
Penalty
|
|
1.
|
Clause 17(i) of
Revised Comprehensive Guidelines
|
|
|
(a) Owner/driver of the private vehicle (four
wheeler) carrying more than one passenger excluding driver .
|
Rs. 1000/-
|
|
|
2.
|
National Directives
for COVID-19 Management.
|
|
|
(a) Non-wearing of
a face cover in public places and workplaces.
|
Rs. 500/-
|
|
|
(b) Violation of
social distancing norms by persons who are in charge of public places,
workplaces and transport.
|
Rs. 2500/-
|
|
|
(c)
Organization/managers of public places allowing gathering of more than 5 or
more persons.
|
Rs. 5000/-
|
|
|
(d) Spitting in
public places.
|
Rs. 1000/-
|
|
|
(e) Illegal sale of
liquor.
|
Rs. 15000/-
|
|
|
(f) Illegal sale of
gutka and tobacco.
|
Rs. 2500/-
|
|
|
3.
|
Violation of social
distancing norms by individual(s) in public places, workplaces and transport.
|
Rs. 1000/-
|
|
4.
|
Urinating in public
places.
|
Rs. 1000/-
|
All Sub-Divisional
Magistrates, Executive Magistrates, Revenue officials of the rank of Patwari
and above, Sanitary Inspectors of the PBMC, Panchayat Secretaries of the RD
Department and police personnel of the rank of constable and above have been
authorized to impose and collect fines as mentioned above. However, this does
not bar any other legal action that may be attracted due to violation of any
other act / law / rule in force.
All fines shall be
collected through TR-5 receipts and deposited to the respective SDM offices
within two days of collection, which in turn shall arrange to remit the same
into the Government account under Major Head 0070 -Other Receipts. A daily
statement of the fines imposed and collected by the respective officers shall
be submitted by the SDM (SA) by 6 PM every day to the District Magistrate,
South Andaman.
The order has come
into effect from 21st April, 2020 and shall remain in force till the
pandemic of COVID - 19 is over as declared by the Andaman and Nicobar Administration
or till further orders.
