Covid rules violated in states on Holi eve
In Uttar Pradesh, large crowds gathered on Sunday evening to celebrate Holika Dahan.
States like Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan on Sunday reported large-scale violations of Covid-19 restrictions on the eve of Holi festival, even as celebrations in most other states remain subdued amid the rising cases of infections. In poll-bound West Bengal and Assam, candidates from various parties celebrated Holi with voters.
In the past 24 hours, India registered 68,204 fresh coronavirus cases, taking the tally to 12,039,199.. As the country sees an upsurge in Covid-19 cases on a daily basis, several states have declared a ban on the public celebration of Holi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi while cancelling Holi Milan urged people not to celebrate the festival in large gatherings.
However, health authorities and experts sounded caution that if people did not adhere to the Covid-19 protocols, the upcoming festivals of Holi and Shab-e-Baraat might turn into superspreader events. Some state governments have imposed restrictions to prevent huge gatherings on Holi, including no public celebrations and in places where public celebrations were allowed, gathering was restricted to not more than 50 people. In Uttarakhand and Maharashtra, additional police personnel have been deployed to take action against revellers.
In Uttar Pradesh, mass-scale violations of Covid-19 protocols were reported on the eve of Holi as large crowds gathered to celebrate Holika Dahan, the ritual performed on the eve of the Holi. Scores of people gathered at Aminabad crossing giving each other a Holi hug. Similar reports of violation of Covid-19 protocols came from Qaiserbagh crossing and main Udaiganj road.
Amarnath Mishra, chief warden Civil Defence, said, “Many people were drunk and were not ready to listen to our volunteers.” He added that the scenes were similar at several places in Lucknow. Lucknow Commissioner of Police D.K Thakur said that all spots were Holika Dahan was organised across the city have been listed down. “We deployed police personnel at every spot to ensure enforcement of Covid-19 protocols and unnecessary gathering will not be allowed anywhere,” Thakur said.
In Uttarakhand, which saw a relatively subdued celebrations compared to previous years, images of people violating social distancing norms in Haridwar were uploaded on social media. The state reported 366 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday, the highest one-day count in the state this year.
Also read | Delhi CM, L-G urge people to celebrate Holi indoors
In Haridwar, where Akhada seers have decided to push for Holi using flowers instead of colours, the basic Covid-19 norms were not being followed.
In Maharashtra, with the sudden upsurge of coronavirus cases, the civil and district authorities have announced a ban on Holi celebrations in both private and public places. Mumbai Mayor Kishori Pednekar has urged people to not venture out unnecessarily during Holi celebrations and strictly follow Covid-19 norms. On Sunday, chief minister Uddav Thackeray said that as people were not adhering to Covid-19 norms, a lockdown can be enforced.
In Himachal Pradesh, bazars wore a deserted look and police kept a strict vigil as Holi was celebrated in some parts of the state on Sunday. The state has banned large gatherings in wake of spike in Covid-19 cases. The chief minister has urged people to celebrate Holi only with family members and avoid crowding.
In Delhi, the police have banned public celebrations. In Rajasthan, the government has allowed celebrations only between 4 pm and 10 pm. On Friday, the Bihar government issued an order saying only ‘minimum number’ of people will be allowed to gather at one place during Holika Dahan and Shab-e-Barat. With lockdown imposed in Indore, Bhopal and Jabalpur, and several other cities, MP asked citizens to celebrate Holi at home.
Odisha, meanwhile, has made it mandatory that not more than 200 people would be allowed inside the Dola Melan grounds and banned any procession with musical instruments, lightings and crowd. For Holi festival on 29, the state government has banned all rituals in public places throughout the state.
The Jharkhand government has issued fresh advisory to avoid any possibility of coronavirus spread amid Holi, Easter, Eid, and Shab-e-Barat. The Haryana government has banned public celebrations even though the state has issued no specific guidelines for Holi.
Poll-bound West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu issued guidelines, including asking people to avoid gatherings, wear masks, maintain social distancing, and hygiene. Some candidates in Assam and West Bengal went out to celebrate Holi with large groups of people.
In the north-east, most states have not issued any specific guidelines except imposition of Section 144 of CrPC in Tripura and Mizoram.
