Kolkata: Doctors clear doubts on use of mask

KOLKATA: Venturing out without a mask is often resulting in harassment for citizens across Kolkata. Over the last one week, many have been accosted by policemen and civic volunteers and stopped from entering shops or queuing up at them without wearing mask. While the police said that they have no guideline, which says a mask is mandatory for citizens, experts have maintained that only healthworkers need to wear them apart from those who have Covid-19 symptoms.
A senior citizen was intercepted by a constable at Maniktala market earlier this week for not wearing a mask.He was stopped from entering the market and asked why he was not wearing one. Civic volunteers have been accosting people without masks at Girish Park as well. Many have failed to acquire masks as they flew off the shelves after a huge spurt in demand. Doctors believe that the bulk of the masks are being used by those who don’t need it. “Unless you are venturing close to suspects or a crowd, which very few are doing now, you don’t really need a mask. Also, many are using it as a fashion accessory or just following the trend. This has deprived healthworkers of masks even though they need it most,” said a medic.

A leading departmental store chain has refused to let customers in its outlets without masks. Those without one are being asked to wait outside and receive goods from a store assistant wearing a mask.
“There is no official direction to make it compulsory. We are merely encouraging people, especially vendors at the markets to wear masks as they are vulnerable,” a senior police Kolkata Police officer said.
A mask protects you, but you can’t use it for several days, said pulmonologist Raja Dhar. “It must be sanitized after 5-6 hours of use and discarded after 4-5 days. More importantly, healthy people don’t need a mask,” Dhar said.