29 Shopkeepers Arrested in Bhadrak Town for Defying Social Distancing Norms

Bhadrak: Taking cue from the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s call for tough action against indiscipline and violation of social distancing norms, the police arrested at least 29 shopkeepers in Bhadrak town for allegedly disobeying social distancing guidelines.

The Chief Minister on Sunday said that there would be zero tolerance on violation of social distancing.

Any violation of social distancing will attract criminal action, the CM stated.

Earlier, the Bhadrak district administration had also instructed the shop owners to follow the social distancing measures at their shops in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

According to the guidelines, the shopkeepers must ensure social distancing within and outside the shops and customers stand in queue inside marked circles with minimum distance of 5 feet while purchasing essential commodities.

In case of non-adherence, the shops will be sealed by local empowered officer with the help of police and appropriate action will be taken against the owner under Section 188 of IPC, the government order said.