Uttarakhand High Court Mandates Wearing Face Masks Inside Courtrooms

The Uttarakhand High Court via notification dated December 23, 2022, considering the new guidelines of COVID-19 dated December 22, 2022, issued by the Uttarakhand Government has mandated the wearing of face masks inside the courtrooms.

The Chief Justice of the High Court issued the following directions for the High Court and District Courts –

"(i) All Officers, Staff, Advocates, parties etc. shall maintain social distancing in the Court Premises and also in the Court Rooms.

(ii) There shall be restrictions for entry in the Court premises and the Court Hall without wearing Face masks.

(iii) All Court Rooms & Premises shall be sanitized regularly.

(iv) It shall be ensured that there is no congestion in the Court Premises and the Court Rooms."

Earlier, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami urged the health department to start a campaign to give Covid booster doses. He instructed the department employees to begin setting up holding facilities for the same.

The Karnataka Government has also mandated the use of N95 facemasks in public places.