Even as the residents’ welfare associations (RWAs) across the city started enforcing the Covid-19 protocols in their societies and condominiums, following directions from the district administration on Tuesday, many said they were unable to ascertain the travel history of residents.

“We received the circular on Wednesday and the directions related to wearing masks, thermal checking, sanitizing common areas is being taken up. It will be difficult to track flight plans as people cite privacy concerns and also don’t want to give too much information to RWAs,” said Sanjay Lal, former vice-president, Lagoon RWA.

However, RWAs said they have started implementing safety measures with ease.

At Ramprastha City, where around 1,200 families live in three condominiums, the RWA on Wednesday decided to restrict the entry of car cleaners and domestic help who were working in houses from where new cases were reported. They have been asked to self-quarantine, said RWA members, adding that strict checking of visitors and thermal scanning of food delivery persons was also started.

“Apart from taking these measures, we are organizing a Covid test camp for all maintenance staff that includes horticulture, housekeeping technical workers,” said Pradeep Rahi, president, Ramprastha City Welfare Association, adding that from Thursday, they will start penalizing residents who don’t wear masks.

The administration on Tuesday put the onus of tracking travelers on RWAs, even as the city continued to witness a spike in Covid-19 cases, with 611, the highest single-day spike this year, reported on Wednesday. The number of active cases, which was at 534 on March 15, rose to 3,905 on Wednesday. The district administration said that the Covid-19 norms should be implemented strictly and violators will be charged under sections of the IPC and Disaster Management Act.

At Vatika Seven Lamps in Vatika City, the RWA said it has shared guidelines issued by the district administration with residents and asked them to follow them strictly.

“We are regularly sharing information, such as notices from administration, testing, and vaccination with residents related. We are working towards limiting the entry of visitors and asked residents to declare their recent foreign travel history,” said Mamta Yadav, president, The Seven Lamps RWA.

Yadav, however, said that getting travel details and other personal information was difficult for RWAs, as residents fear they would be forced into quarantine.

RWA functionaries said that some residents even avoid testing, as a positive result could bring their work and travel plans to a halt. “People prefer staying at home and getting treated silently as Covid-19 is still considered a stigma,” said an RWA member, requesting anonymity.

On Sohna road, Dharmender Jha, the president of Rosewood RWA, said all curbs will.be implemented fully in two to three days. “If home deliveries are banned, people start fighting with the RWA. So instead of banning these, we have decided to enforce thermal checks and sanitization of visitors. We are also strict on wearing masks for everyone and challans will be issued to violators,” he said.

Parveen Malik, a resident of Sare Homes, said that their RWA had already put in place several measures but these are being made more stringent. “People not wearing masks will be fined, we already have a database of senior citizens, who will be cared for. Entry of outsiders will be restricted,” he said.

Agencies maintaining condominiums also said that they had activated the safety protocols and are working towards implementing the norms. “We are closely following the rising Covid cases in the country, specifically across Delhi/ NCR. We have been sending out communication in the form of mailers and WhatsApp to residents so that they adhere to Covid-19 safety guidelines,” said AK Singh, president, and chief executive officer of Enviro, a maintenance agency.