Since he was able to start working more than a month ago, Munish Tiwari, an Indian VTC driver, has already received two fines of 500 rupees (5.8 euros) for non-compliance with the compulsory wearing of mask.
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" It's not comfortable and I can't breathe when I'm wearing it, " said the New Delhi driver, who lost the income from a day's work in tickets, told AFP. " I have to wear it when there are passengers, but as soon as the doors close and they are gone, I remove it normally. I am easy prey for the police. "
The coronavirus epidemic is currently raging in India, which to date has 23,727 deaths out of 906,752 reported cases of Covid-19 disease. Experts say the epidemic is still not at its peak in the second most populous nation on the planet, where the numbers are rising rapidly.
In this context of health crisis, the government requires the wearing of masks in public spaces, in transport and at work. If the measure seems generally respected in the big cities, of many Indians however wear their uncomfortable mask in a baroque way, hanging in the ear, slipped under the nose or the chin.
" Negligence "
Since March, the Delhi police have distributed more than 42,000 fines for not wearing a mask or not respecting physical distance. Throughout India, the police have collected hundreds of thousands of euros in fines, which range from 200 rupees in Bangalore (2.3 euros) to 1,000 rupees (11.7 euros) in Bombay.
The fines given for non-compliance with health protection measures amount to almost 117,000 euros in one month in the city of Bangalore (south), local police chief Hemant Nimbalkar announced the week on Twitter. " We are not proud of this feat, " he said, calling on residents to follow the instructions to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
In a recent televised address to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi castigated the " negligence " of some of his fellow citizens in the face of the virus and urged them not to relax their vigilance. In the city of Firozabad (north), offenders wearing a mask are not fined but must take a four-hour course on physical distancing and write down 500 times " A mask must be worn ".
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On a street in Hyderabad, AFP met Professor Sunitha Michael wearing her mask under her chin, a strap wedged between her teeth. To be able to speak on the phone, she said. " Frankly, I hate having to wear a mask because it is painful, but I must respect the rules, " she testified.