The amount collected till date by Manipur police in its drive against violators of COVID-19 guidelines and restrictions imposed by the state government from time to time to check the spread of the pandemic has crossed Rs 1.82 on Saturday.

Like in other states of the country, the state police has been conducting drives against violators of the COVID-19 guidelines and restrictions imposed by the government to check the spread of the viral infections since the very day the countrywide lockdown was imposed in March, 2020. From the very day till date, the police have collected Rs 1,82,63,370 as fine from 1,33,921 persons who violated the guidelines and restrictions in one or other way. A total of 51,850 vehicles were also panelised, said a police source.

The total amount included Rs 95,150 collected as a fine today (on Saturday), the police said while informing that 334 persons were detained and released after penalisation and warning.

The police said that the crackdown is being conducted on the violators of guidelines and restrictions issued by the state government and the Disaster Management Authority in connection with COVID-19 pandemic. The drive is being conducted against those who failed to wear face masks in public places, failure to maintain social distancing, spitting at public places, etc. to prevent the spread of COVID-19 virus in the state.

Those who violate the guidelines and restrictions will be dealt with by strong legal action under National Disaster Management Act, 2005 and other appropriate laws, the police added.