HUGE CROWD GATHERED FOR KUMBH MELA IN HARIDWAR, WITH NO SIGNS OF PHYSICAL-DISTANCING

On one hand, the COVID-19 cases are spiking up rapidly in our country, on the other hand, the huge crowd of devotees was seen gathering at Kumbh Mela in Haridwar, with no signs of physical distancing. The crowd has created a potential ‘time-bomb’ of COVID-19 infection, which can burst at any time. During Kumbh Mela, devotees gather near river banks/ghats in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar for worship and for taking a dip in the holy Ganga river. The Uttarakhand Police filed in making proper arrangements for physical distancing. Neither any challans were issued to devotees. This is a sure sign of carelessness and ignorance. Sanjay Gunjyal, Inspector-General of Police, Haridwar Kumbh Mala, said, “The police force continuously kept appealing the devotees to follow COVID appropriate behavior. It becomes practically impossible for the police to issue challans, due to the huge crowd. Ensuring physical distancing is also difficult. A stampede-like situation might have taken place if physical-distancing was implemented at ghats.” All this took place when the government, doctors, and other forces are working day & night to combat the 13.65 lakh active COVID-19 cases in the country. The IG said that the general public will be allowed on ghats only till 07:00 am, and after it, the akharas will be allowed in the area. The COVID-19 cases are rising at an alarming rate all around the country, and several states have imposed night curfews, and lockdowns to block the further spread of the virus. On Saturday (10th April), Uttarakhand reported 1,235 fresh COVID-19 infections, 318 recoveries, and 3 deaths. The state has 6,000 active COVID cases currently. Source: Hindustan Times