Health Secy inspects crowded areas for use of masks

The Health Department officials had found that overcrowding in public spaces was a major reason for the COVID cases increasing in the past few days. Considering this, Radhakrishnan inspected public areas and markets in the city to ensure that safety measures were being followed. 

“The compliance to safety measures and use of masks have reduced in past few months. We fear a second wave of COVID-19 and it is a challenge for our department to ensure adherence to safety protocols in public places. We could be in the same situation as Maharashtra and Kerala with cases surging in a similar manner,” he said. 

After inspecting public places, officials instructed the district deputy directors to ensure that safety precautions were enforced at public places and public gatherings. 

According to officials from the Directorate of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, the clusters emerging now are due to gatherings and public events. Thus, the organisers have been instructed to follow the standard operating procedures on the number of people allowed to take part in gatherings.