Action was taken on 127 lockdown violations recorded on Friday.

Maldives Police Service (MPS) revealed via their daily public of lockdown violations that the number is lower, in comparison to the 183 violations recorded on Thursday.

Out of the 127, 115 individuals were slapped with fines on Friday, whereas the number was at 172 the previous day. 85 individuals were fined from Malé, 29 from Hulhumalé and one from Villimalé on Friday.

The total number of individuals fined for breaching the lockdown up until Friday sits at 4,918 which includes 4,248 from Malé, 570 from Hulhumalé and 100 from Villimalé.

The publication further reveals that 12 were arrested on Friday, while 11 were arrested the previous day. As such, seven were taken into police custody from capital Malé City and five from Hulhumalé, on Friday.

With this development, the total number of individuals under police custody for violating the lockdown order, has risen to 272, they are 239 from Malé, 30 from Hulhumalé and three from Villimalé.

Under the orders of the Director General of Public Health, first time violators of the lockdown will be slapped with MVR 1,000 fines and repeat offenders will be arrested under Article 533 (a) of the Penal Code.

Maldives capital Malé City was locked down on April 15 following the detection of the first ever Covid-19 community transmission.

Since then, police had been issuing daily permits for individuals to go out for essential supplies. Individuals have been limited from going out for essentials, to once a week, since then.

The lockdown was initially set to end on May 14, however, authorities pushed it to another fortnight and the lockdown will remain in effect until May 28.

Authorities have continuously been pushing the public to obey guidelines set by the HPA for the safety and security of the community, stressing that the entire community is put at risk of contracting the virus due to a number of individuals who do not follow instructions set by the authorities for the safety of the community.