Nearly half the people of North 24-Parganas are not wearing masks and that could result in a spurt in Covid-19 cases in the district, senior health department officials warned the district administration on Wednesday.

Sources said health department officials told the sub-divisional and block development officers of North 24-Parganas at a meeting during the day to immediately start enforcing the mask rule with the help of police.

If required, more and more people will have to be booked for not wearing masks and repeat offenders will have to be fined religiously, the officials representing the district administration were told.

“The number of Covid cases is rising in the district but a large number of people are still reluctant to wear masks. This can’t go on. The district officials have been asked to ensure strict enforcement,” said Tapas Roy, the chief medical officer of health of North 24-Parganas.

Health department officials said Barasat was a case in point.

“The number of active cases in Barasat stood at 354 on October 17. On October 28, it was 454. In just 10 days the count increased by 100,” said an official.

Public health specialists are repeatedly stressing that wearing masks, along with social distancing and frequent hand washing, will significantly bring down chances of infection.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee has on several occasions appealed to people to wear masks when stepping out.

Health officials said visitors’ turnout at pandals in parts of Bidhannagar, South Dum Dum, North Dum Dum, Baranagar, Kamarhati, Panihati, Barrackpore and Barasat had jumped on Ashtami and Navami.

While most pandal-hoppers wore masks, many were spotted on roads or at stalls without one. Since a large part of the police force was busy in law and order duty, there was not enough prosecution for violation of the mask rule.

“People started visiting pandals in large numbers from Ashtami,” said Asani Mukherjee, a member of the board of administrators of Barasat Municipality. “There may have been some slip-ups on the fringes and in rural pockets. But most residents of the town are aware about the utility of masks.”

Health officials said irrespective of rural or urban pockets, the number of cases across North 24-Parganas has been rising steadily. More than 800 cases are being reported every day.

With most Covid cases opting for home isolation, the health department has decided to meet officials from North and South 24-Parganas on Thursday to discuss how to monitor Covid patients in home isolation so they don’t develop serious complications.