New Delhi, March 16 (IANS): Local bodies in Delhi on Monday imposed section 376 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 and made it mandatory to set up sanitation points for washing hands and sanitisers in public places.

Now it has become mandatory for all the RWAs, markets, banquet halls, malls and hotels to set up sanitation points for washing hands along with sanitisers.

The hotels, malls, banquet halls, eateries, market associations and RWAs will have to check that no mass gathering is allowed.

Violators can be booked, the order says.

Section 376 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957 deals with the special measures in case of outbreak of dangerous or epidemic diseases.

It allows the Municipal Commissioner to take special measures and give directions on the same for the necessary preventive measures to control the outbreak or spread of the disease.

Also, the Act says no person can commit a breach of any direction given by the commissioner. The breach can be considered an offence under the Indian Penal Code.

The order from the local bodies was issued after a meeting with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

The local bodies here have initiated the actions invoking provisions of the Delhi Epidemic Diseases COVID-19 Regulations 2020.