A mobile court on Monday fined nine people in the district's Akhaura upazila for not wearing masks in public places. A team, led by Saiful Islam, the executive magistrate and assistant commissioner of the upazila administration (land), conducted a drive in Sorokbazar, Borobazar and rail station areas and challaned the nine for not adhering to Covid-safety protocols. Read: 2 restaurants fined Tk 1.5 lakh in DMP drive “The nine people were fined Tk 2,500 for breaching the government's Covid-safety guidelines,” said upazila sanitary inspector Md Rafiqul Islam. The Bangladesh government has announced strict measures to contain the rising cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 and those flouting the same will be punished, said the executive magistrate. The drive will continue until further notice, he added. Read: Extra fares in public transports: 1408 buses fined Tk 57.3 lakh in 30 days Bangladesh is currently witnessing a surge of Covid cases, with the country registering 38,478 infections in the last 16 days since January 1.