Amid the 21-day nationwide lockdown, while the government has been taken steps to fight against coronavirus by providing helpline numbers to deal with those in trouble during the lockdown, reports of bizarre demands on helpline numbers continue to pour in.
One such report was from Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur, where a man dialed the District Magistrate’s number demanding hot samosas to be delivered at his doorstep. As per sources, the man kept on calling, even after repeated warnings, hindering the working of the authorities.
Subsequently, District Magistrate Aunjaneya Kumar Singh sent the man samosas, but, with a punishment. The man was made to clean a nearby drain, for exploiting the helpline service.
The District Magistrate then took to Twitter, sharing the picture of ‘samosa man’ cleaning a drain. He also warned others against making such calls at a time when the country is going through a crisis.
The district administration in Uttar Pradesh’s Rampur has set up a helpline to attend calls of the needy in want of food during the ongoing 21-day nationwide lockdown. However, the administration stated that locals have flooded the essential service’s helpline with demands for pizzas and samosas. “There are many who are dialing these helpline numbers to order pizzas and samosas,” stated Rampur administration. A day before, someone called and wanted the pizza delivered at his home.
Meanwhile, DM Aunjaneya Kumar Singh stated that 50% of “our resources and time is used to handle these nonsensical demands”. “Persons concerned were simply testing the system,” he added.
The district administration has now taken up the matter seriously and has started imposing fines of Rs 500 for every such violation. As per sources, till Monday evening, the Rampur administration had collected close to Rs 2 lakh in fines alone.
