HONG KONG -- The Leisure and Cultural Services Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government has stepped up patrols to ensure members of the public to comply with relevant regulations on group gatherings and mask-wearing.

From Sunday to 4:00 pm local time (0800 GMT) Monday, about 3,300 times of verbal advice were given out during over 6,000 patrols of venues by the department staff, according to an official press release.

In the same period, fixed penalty notices were issued to two persons breaching the Prevention and Control of Disease (Wearing of Mask) Regulation (Cap. 599I) on mandatory mask-wearing requirement in specified public places.

Promotional leaflets as well as venue broadcast and notices were used to urge the public to raise awareness of epidemic prevention and comply with the various anti-epidemic regulations and restrictions during patrols of venues by the department staff.

A spokesman of the department asked members of the public to stay vigilant and comply with the relevant regulations on the prevention and control of disease in a concerted and persistent manner.

On Monday, Hong Kong registered 120 new COVID-19 cases by nucleic acid tests, and 113 additional cases through self-reported rapid antigen tests, official data showed.