Govt notification warns of criminal charges against rumour-mongers
BENGALURU:
The state government has notified ‘The Karnataka Epidemic Diseases (COVID-19) Regulations, 2020’, requiring any institution or organisation or person not to use any print or electronic media for misinformation regarding Covid-19 without the permission of the health department.
The four-page notification was published on Wednesday. The notification says the decision has been taken to avoid spreading of rumours or unauthenticated information regarding the corona virus.
“In case any person, institution or organisation is found violating these directions, an offence under section 188 of IPC (45 of 1860) will be registered against them,” the notification says.
DISTRICT POWERS
If cases of Covid-19 are reported from a defined geographic area, the administration of the concerned district shall have the right to implement the following containment measures (but not limited to these):
1. Sealing of geographic area
2. Barring of entry and exit of population from the containment area
3. Closure of schools, offices and banning public gatherings
4. Banning vehicular movement in the area
5. Designating any government or private building as containment unit for the isolation of cases
6. Staff of all government departments shall be at the disposal of the concerned district administration of the concerned area for discharging the duty of containment measures
