Panchkula CMO asks RWAs to report travellers coming in

The move has been taken to “track incoming people and keep them under radar especially returning from high risk areas,” said the CMO.

Civil surgeon, Panchkula, Thursday circulated a message amid the Resident Welfare Associations of the district, directing them to report if any domestic travelers have reached their society.

“Keeping in view the Covid pandemic and recent travel relaxations, many people are travelling to Panchkula by various means like air, bus, taxis, private vehicles etc…You are requested to share the information of such passengers on a daily basis,” states the circulated messages.

The move has been taken to “track incoming people and keep them under radar especially returning from high risk areas,” said the CMO.

Residents, meanwhile, fear an increase in encroachment of citizen privacy, increased vigilantism along with a rise in community policing.

“Citizens will have to come forward and take responsibility. The police and administration even if they desire, cannot realistically keep a check on each person coming in,” said Ashutosh Kumar, a professor of political science at Panjab University, while talking about the administration’s step.

Highlighting the nuances of the decision, he added, “Such steps are bound to promote settling of personal grudges against individuals and create an overall unpleasantness in the neighbourhood. These are tough times and administration will have to be persuasive.”