Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday asked the Maharashtra government and civic bodies to consider using part of fines collected from the people not wearing masks for distributing sanitizers and masks to the persons from the lower strata of society. A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice G S Kulkarni said homeless people, beggars, and those living on roads are usually seen without masks and may not be in a position to purchase them regularly.
The high court was informed by the government that the fines collected from the people for not wearing masks were used by the disaster management department towards COVID-19 related resources. You (government and other civic bodies) may also utilize this fine amount collected to provide masks to the homeless people and beggars or to those persons who are living under the poverty line so that they need not purchase, the bench said.
Masks and sanitizers should be given to the unattended segment of the society, Justice Kulkarni said. The high court added that authorities should carry out a drive to ensure that every person wears a mask.
I have seen people in Malabar Hill (south Mumbai) going jogging or early morning walks without masks. A few weeks back we learned from news reports that there is a high number of COVID-19 cases in Malabar Hill high rises. These people do not care about their own lives and put others also at risk. Chief Justice Datta said. The HC also said that the police or civic body marshals should step up their drive against this.
It also said that the government should also look into how vaccination can be provided to those people who do not have any electronic devices to register themselves. The high court was hearing public interest litigation seeking a uniform policy for collection of fines throughout the state for not wearing masks and also suggested the use of special masks for persons with speech and hearing disabilities.
The bench has posted the matter for further hearing on May 6.
