JOIN USIt is worrying that when the country is staring at a real possibility of widespread community transmission of the coronavirus, mass gatherings at religious and cultural events are being permitted despite the fact that several state governments have themselves issued advisories against holding events where crowds gather. Although India is still in stage 2 of the Covid-19 outbreak, the Indian Council of Medical Research has warned that community transmission of the coronavirus in India is inevitable. Over the past week, the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 have increased in India and it has appeared in states across the country. Religious melas where lakhs of people converge provide ample opportunity for the coronavirus to spread among community clusters. In Uttar Pradesh, where the annual Ramanavami mela is set to be held in Ayodhya from March 25 to April 2, the Yogi Adityanath government, in insisting that the mela will go ahead as planned, is putting political gains from holding the event over the warnings of science and scientists. Putting the lives of lakhs of people in jeopardy at a time when a highly contagious virus is sweeping the world is reprehensible. Let’s hope the BJP government in UP does not go down this path.
Similar mass gatherings are continuing at religious and cultural events in other parts of the country as well. Last week, some 1.5 lakh worshippers participated in the Kadiri Narasimha Swamy Brahmotsavam in Anantpur district. In Karnataka, this is the ‘’jathre (temple festival) season” when entire village communities come together to participate in mass rituals and celebrations. Only a few days ago, lakhs of people assembled at a jathre at Chikkodi taluk in Belagavi district. District administrations are doing little to halt such mass gatherings; indeed, these are being facilitated by authorities through provision of public transport facilities.
There are some, including political leaders and prominent voices, who argue that the faithful will not be affected by the coronavirus and that visiting places of worship will protect them from infections. Blind faith is troubling in the best of times, but at a time when the world is grappling with a serious health crisis, it is dangerous. We need to follow science and act rationally. Temples, mosques, gurudwaras and churches must follow the path of Mumbai’s Siddhivinayak temple and the Tirupati temple which have decided to close their doors till the virus crisis subsides.