The move comes in the wake of reports of assaults on healthcare workers at some places in the country, including in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved an ordinance imposing stringent penalties, including a maximum jail term of seven years and a fine up to Rs 5 lakh, on those found guilty of attacking or harassing health workers treating persons infected with the coronavirus disease (Covid-19). It makes violent offences cognisable and non-bailable. The move comes in the wake of reports of assaults on healthcare workers at some places in the country, including in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka.
The ordinance amends the Epidemic Diseases Act (EDA), 1897. Under the new rules, a person can be imprisoned for a period of three months to five years and asked to pay a fine of Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters after a meeting of the Union Cabinet here on Wednesday.
In case of grave injuries to health workers, the guilty will be sent to jail for a term that could range between six months and seven years, and will be asked to pay a fine of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. In case properties of health workers, including their ambulances, are damaged, the attackers will have to pay twice the market price of such assets. According to the proposed amendments, investigation against the accused will have to be conducted within 30 days and a final decision taken within a year…Read More
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