Omicron alert: Mumbai bans large gatherings for 48 hours, Sec 144 in place

Amid rising cases of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, the Mumbai Police on Friday imposed prohibitory orders in the city for 48 hours, banning large gatherings over the weekend.

A police official, cited by the PTI news agency, said the prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) within the Mumbai Commissionerate limits also restrict rallies and protest marches involving people and vehicles over the next two days.

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The orders, issued by the deputy commissioner of police (operations) in Mumbai, were necessary, according to the police, in view of the threat posed by the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which is said to be highly infectious and capable of undergoing frequent mutations. The restrictive orders also come against the backdrop of violent protests in Amravati and other regions in Maharashtra last week.

“It has been issued to prevent danger to human life from the new Omicron variant of Covid-19 as well as a threat to the law and order situation against the backdrop of violence that took place in Amravati, Malegaon, and Nanded,” a senior police official was quoted as saying by PTI.

According to the prohibitory orders issued in Mumbai, violators will be punished under section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and other legal provisions.

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Maharashtra reported 695 new Covid-19 cases and 12 deaths in the past 24 hours. With the new infections, Maharashtra’s caseload rose to 66,42,372 including 6,534 active cases.

The tally of Omicron variant infections found in the state also went up to 17, according to the state health department bulletin. The latest report from the National Institute of Virology showed seven new Omicron cases have been reported in Maharashtra—three in Mumbai and four in Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation in the Pune district.

The three new patients from Mumbai were all men, aged 48, 25, and 37 years with a recent history of travel to Tanzania, the UK, and South Africa, respectively.