JOIN USThe district administration has decided to give permission to the devotees to take part in the Cauvery Theerthodbhava event to be held on October 17, after relaxing the rules imposed earlier.
As the move by the district administration to allow only those devotees who come by walk drew wide criticism, it has now been permitted to arrive at Talacauvery in vehicles.
The development came after a meeting chaired by Social Welfare and Backward Classes Welfare Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary, in the presence of the elected representatives of the district and the deputy commissioner, on Wednesday.
Addressing reporters, the minister said that the rules were imposed earlier as per the request by the elected representatives. However, the MLAs have requested that permission be given to all devotees for the Theerthodbhava as the people share an emotional bond with River Cauvery.
“The people should follow the Covid-19 restrictions during the event. Arrangements will be made for thermal scanning and sanitizing. All other restrictions imposed earlier have been cleared. The local MLAs have also discussed this matter with the chief minister,” he said.
The minister further said that the decision on allowing people to take a holy dip in Talacauvery will be taken during a meeting to be held on October 7.
The rule might be relaxed if the Covid-19 positivity rate decreases in the next 10 days, he added.
No decision has been taken regarding permitting the devotees from other districts, he said and expressed his confidence in people following the rules of social distancing voluntarily.
Kota Srinivas Poojary meanwhile clarified that there is no relaxation in the rules imposed towards Madikeri and Gonikoppa Dasara.
Madikeri MLA Appachu Ranjan M P said that the restrictions were imposed on the Theerthodbhava event as a precautionary measure against Covid-19.
However, the devotees themselves have urged authorities to give permission to take part in the event. The confusions are cleared now, he added.
Virajpet MLA K G Bopaiah, MLC Sunil Subramani and MLC Veena Achaiah were present in the meeting.
'Know the objective of RSS'
Minister Kota Srinivas Poojary said that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangha (RSS) is all about nationalism and patriotic values.
The remarks by H D Kumaraswamy and Siddaramaiah on RSS are irrelevant. Both of them need to understand the objective of RSS, he added.
When reporters asked K G Bopaiah regarding the confusion on Theerthodbhava, he replied that the reporters should ask those who created the confusion.
He said that during the earlier meeting chaired by the minister, he had to leave early to take part in a meeting in Gonikoppa.