Duties of municipal council on threatened or actual outbreak of infectious disease

(1) In the event of the municipal area or any part thereof being at any time threatened or visited with an outbreak of any infectious disease, the municipal council shall take all such measures as it deems necessary for the purpose of preventing, meeting, mitigating or suppressing such attack. (2) In such event as aforesaid the Government may, by special notification, declaring that such municipal area is threatened or visited with an outbreak of an infectious disease, confer on the municipal council all or any of the powers specified in the following sub-section, and such municipal council shall, subject to such limitations, restrictions and conditions, if any, as the Government in the same or in any subsequent notification may prescribe, exercise every such power so conferred on it until the same is withdrawn by means of a like notification. (3) The powers, all or any of which may be conferred under the preceding sub-section, are,— (a) power to order, subject, to the conditions,— (i) that the permission of a magistrate exercising not less than second class powers shall in each case be first obtained, and (ii) that accommodation for all persons to whom the order refers is available, or shall be provided, elsewhere, the evacuation of an infected building used as a dwelling or of any part thereof, or of any building so used adjacent to such building, by the person or persons residing whether habitually or temporarily, therein; (b) power to direct the examination by a medical officer of persons and, if necessary, the disinfection of the clothing, bedding or other suspicious articles, belonging to persons, either arriving from places outside the municipal area or residing in any infected building or building adjacent to any infected building, and to direct that any such person shall give his address and present himself daily for medical examination at such time and places as may be specified, for a period not exceeding ten days; (c) power to prohibit either generally, or by special order in any individual case, assemblages consisting of any number of persons exceeding fifty, in any place whether public or private, or in any circumstances or for any purpose, if in the opinion, recorded in writing, of the District Health Officer or other senior medical or health officer of the district or other medical or health officer appointed by the Government in this behalf, such assemblages in such place, in such circumstances or for such purpose, would be likely to become a means of spreading the disease or of rendering it more virulent. (4) The municipal council may, in its discretion give compensation to any person who sustains substantial loss by the destruction of any property under this section: but except as allowed by the municipal council no claim for compensation shall lie for any loss or damage caused by any exercise of the powers specified therein. (5) If in any municipal area in which such declaration under sub-section (2), as aforesaid is for the time being in force, any person,— (a) knowingly disobeys any order which for the time being is in force in such municipal area and which has been passed by the municipal council in exercise of any power conferred on it by section 248 or under this section, or (b) obstructs any officer of the municipal council or other person acting under the authority of the municipal council in carrying out or executing any such order, such person shall be punishable with fine which may extend to Rs. 1,000.