DDMA allows Chhath Puja at designated sites; bars celebrations at Yamuna

It also said that designated sites shall be identified and managed by the respective district magistrate in coordination with departments and agencies concerned

The Delhi Disaster Management Authority on Friday barred Chhath Puja celebrations on the banks of the Yamuna river and allowed celebrations at designated sites only.

Women perform rituals during Chhath Puja celebrations at Baba Farid Puri in New Delhi in this file photo from 2020.  (Sanchit Khanna/ Hindustan Times)

“The celebration of Chhath Pooja during the month of November shall be allowed only at designated sites outside containment zones with requisite permission from the district magistrate. No site shall be designated on the bank of river Yamuna,” the order shared by the DDMA said.

The DDMA earlier on Tuesday allowed Chhath Puja celebrations in the Capital. During Chhath, devotees offer 'Arghya' by fasting to the Sun-god in knee-deep water. The festival is celebrated all over India mainly by people belonging to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

It also said that designated sites shall be identified and managed by the respective district magistrate in coordination with departments and agencies concerned

The approval from the DDMA comes after a meeting among its top officials on Friday. The DDMA, which devises Covid management policies for the Capital, earlier banned Chhath Puja celebrations.

The Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) protested against the DDMA decision. BJP MP from northeast Delhi Manoj Tiwari also took out a Rath Yatra against the ban which was imposed earlier and claimed that the announcement was made following the protests taken out by the BJP. Tiwari also thanked BJP workers and Chhath Puja Samitis for their agitation.

“The sustained protests by the party for allowing Chhatt festivities in the capital has finally fructified. It is a clear defeat of CM Arvind Kejriwal's anti-Hindu policies,” Delhi BJP president Adesh Gupta also said.

Tiwari also accused Kejriwal of playing politics with religious sentiments. “There is no doubt in this that Kejriwal has decided to get Chhath celebration done under the pressure of elections. He is stubborn, he hurt the sentiments of the devotees and would have been continuing but he agreed because of the upcoming elections in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh,” Tiwari was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.