Sushma Swaraj, Ananth Kumar meet Advani

Noida, May 6: Not having Aarogya Setu app on smartphone while out in public in Noida or Greater Noida will be considered a violaton of lockdown rules and the person will be punished.

Action will also be taken against people going outdoors without a face mask or spitting in public places, Gautam Buddh Nagar police said, news agency reported.

Aarogya Setu is a mobile application developed by the central government to connect essential health services with the people to fight Covid-19.

The app is aimed at augmenting the initiatives of the Centre, particularly the Department of Health, in proactively reaching out to and informing the users of the app regarding risks, best practices and relevant advisories pertaining to the containment of Covid-19.

"If smartphone users do not have the 'Aarogya Setu' app installed on their mobile phones, then that will be punishable and considered a violation of the lockdown directions," Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, Law and Order, Ashutosh Dwivedi said.

The district police had on Sunday announced extending the Criminal Procedure Code section 144, which bars assembly of four or more people, till May 17, as the central government extended the nationwide lockdown by another two weeks in a bid to check the spread of the virus.

"Spitting in public places will attract punishment along with a fine. Not wearing a face mask in public places or offices will also be a punishable offence.

During the lockdown period, political, social, religious, sports gatherings as well as protest marches and rallies will remain banned across Noida and Greater Noida, the official said in the order.

"The central government has extended the lockdown till May 17 in view of the coronavirus pandemic. Gautam Buddh Nagar has been identified as 'red zone' and hotspots have been identified here. During this duration, all guidelines of the lockdown are to be followed," he said.

Gautam Buddh Nagar, which falls in the 'Red Zone', has 34 containment zones and has recorded 179 positive cases of coronavirus so far, with 102 of these patients being cured and discharged from hospitals, according to official figures.

New Delhi, May 25: India witnessed the highest ever spike of 6,977 positive cases in the last 24 hours, taking the total number of COVID-19 to 1,38,845, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

India is now among the top 10 countries in the world regarding the total number of COVID-19 cases.

With 154 deaths reported in the last 24 hours, the total number of deaths due to COVID-19 now stands at 4,021 in the country.

Out of the total number of cases, 77,103 are active cases and 57,721 have been cured/discharged/migrated.

Maharashtra continues to remain the worst affected state with 50,231 COVID-19 cases, followed by Tamil Nadu (16,277), Gujarat (14,056) and Delhi (13,418).

The fourth phase of the nationwide lockdown imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19 is scheduled to end on May 31.

New Delhi, Jan 5: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday sàid it was "shameful" that Sadaf Jafar, SR Darapuri and Pavan Rao were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh Police for violence without any evidence against them.

He also said that it was a shocking admission by the police that there is no evidence of their involvement.

"Sadaf Jafar, S R Darapuri and Pavan Rao Ambedkar released on bail after police ADMITTED no evidence of their involvement in violence. Shocking admission," he said on Twitter.

"If that were so, why did the police arrest them in the first place? And how did the Magistrate remand them to custody without looking at the evidence," he asked.
"The law says 'find evidence, then arrest'. The reality is 'first arrest, then search for evidence'. Shameful," Chidambaram tweeted.