Uttarakhand HC seeks state’s reply on suggestion to ban UK tourists during Mahakumbh

The court also directed the state government to file a reply on the suggestion of imposing a night curfew on Christmas, New Year and on January 1 in Nainital district.

Updated on: Dec 23, 2020, 20:08:53 IST

Hindustan Times, Dehradun | By Neeraj Santoshi

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Uttarakhand high court on Wednesday directed the state government to file a reply on the suggestion to ban entry of tourists and pilgrims from the UK during the four-month-long Mahakumbh fair which will begin from January. The development comes in the wake of the surfacing of the new strain of Covid-19 virus in the UK.

Renovation being done at Har-Ki-Pauri ahead of Mahakumbh in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. (File photo)

The court also directed the state government to file a reply on the suggestion of imposing a night curfew on Christmas, New Year and on January 1 in Nainital district. The suggestion was made by the Covid monitoring committee of Nainital.

The court’s direction came while hearing a bunch of PILs on Wednesday. The PILs have been filed by Sachdanand Dabral, Dushyant Mainali, and Rajendra Arya related to various issues regarding the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic in the state. The HC hears these PILs related to the Covid-19 situation in the state on every Wednesday.

Mahakumbh will begin from January 1 and conclude on April 28. The first Shahi Snaan (royal bath) of Mahakumbh will be held on March 11 (Shivratri), second on April 12 (Somwati Amavasya) and the third on April 14 (Baisakhi Mesh Poornima). Before the epidemic, over 12 crore pilgrims were expected to participate in the four-month-long Mahakumbh mela. However, now, given the epidemic, it is not clear yet how many pilgrims would turn up.

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Shiv Bhatt, counsel of Sachdanand Dabral said that during the hearing on Wednesday, these suggestions were made by some advocates and by Nainital monitoring committee. “The court was apprised that Dehradun district administration had already banned public celebrations on Christmas and New Year,” he said

On November 24, the Uttarakhand government had stated that it was planning to allow pilgrims to attend Mahakumbh only after undergoing a Covid-19 test. On September 23, the HC had directed the state government to appoint monitoring committees in all 13 districts of the state to check the condition of treatment facilities for Covid-19 patients in the hospitals, quarantine centres and COVID care centres.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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