Section 144 imposed in Noida as coronavirus cases in region rise to 4

Noida: CrPC Section 144—prohibiting the assembly of four or more people in an area—was imposed Wednesday night in Gautam Budh Nagar till April 5 to contain the spread of coronavirus, additional deputy commissioner of police Ashutosh Dwivedi said.

“Section 144 was imposed as some people have tested positive for novel coronavirus. There is a need to create awareness among people. With the enforcement of restrictions, people can’t organise any cultural, social, religious programmes, where four or more persons can gather,” he said.

Dwivedi added that if people find/come across any person who is exhibiting symptoms of coronavirus—dry cough, shortness of breath and fever— they should report the matter to the police and health department, and not hide the matter.

The state government has said legal action will be taken against those who return from foreign countries and fail to inform the authorities.

TWO SAMPLES TAKEN IN G NOIDA WEST

Noida health department on Wednesday collected samples of two residents of Greater Noida west society, who had recently returned from Dubai, UAE which has reported 98 confirmed cases, as per World Health Organisation.

The samples were taken after other residents of the society panicked and demanded the two Indian nationals be put in isolation for others’ safety.

Deputy commissioner of police (Noida Central) Harish Chander said both the residents are Indian and they have returned from foreign trip recently. “The two persons are in isolation at home and samples have been collected for tests. The police and health department officials are making a coordinated effort to ensure the situation remains peaceful. There was no protest in the society,” he said.

Shailendra Thakur, a resident of the same society, said the maintenance department had shared a text message with other residents informing them about the arrival of the residents. “Police and health department teams reached the society and collected their swab samples. The situation in the society is normal,” he said.