Police have been directed totake criminal action against those spitting in public violating the Disaster Management Act, Chief Minister V Narayanasamy said, pointing out that the Home ministry's guidelines making it an offence under DMA to check COVID-19 spread should be handled stringently by imposition of fine.Narayanasamy also said the guidelines rolled out when the lockdown was extended till May 3 to check the spread of coronavirus also stipulated that wearing of face masks in public places was mandatory.He said Kerala had established a record of being the first State in the country in preventing the spread of the infection."Puducherry is the second in the country after Kerala to achieve the record of keeping the spread of the COVID-19 at bay.We are able to score this achievement largely due to the cooperation of the people, officials of Health and other Departments in strictly enforcing the various conditions envisaged under the lockdown order," he said on Saturday.Narayanasamy claimed the infection was spreading fast in the neighbouring Tamil Nadu districts of Villupuram and Cuddalore."Union Territory of Puducherry should therefore be very vigilant and should not remain slack in containing the spread of the disease," he added.
