Coronavirus: Delhi govt makes wearing masks mandatory while stepping out

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has declared that anyone stepping out of the house will have to wear facial masks.

In a tweet, he said, "Wearing of facial masks can reduce the spread of coronavirus substantially. Therefore, it has been decided that facial masks will be compulsory for anyone stepping out of their house. Cloth mask shall be eligible too."

Cloth masks have been allowed by the central government too, but health officials and those in contact with coronavirus patients will have to wear specialised masks. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare had released an advisory on homemade/cloth masks.

Even before Delhi, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh had declared wearing masks as compulsory and warned that those violating these rules will find themselves on the wrong side of the law.

Masks and sanitisers were added to the list of essential commodities under the Essential Commodity Act, 1955 by the central government last month to protect it from speculation pricing, black-marketing and hoarding by consumers.

Delhi till now has reported 576 COVID-19 cases and 9 deaths.

According to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the number of cases of coronavirus in India has reached 5,274 and the number of deaths is at 149.

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