Devotees throw Covid norms to the wind in Vemulawada

Besides devotees from different parts of Telangana, devotees from adjacent states such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra also participated in jatara

Vemulawada: Devotees participating in Mahasivatri jatara in the famed Rajarajeshwara Swamy temple here threw Covid-19 norms to the winds on Thursday.

Though the district administration and temple authorities appealed to the devotees to follow Covid norms including wearing of face masks and maintaining social distance, only some wore face masks, while a majority of them were seen without masks. More surprising was that there was no social distancing in the queues.

Besides devotees from different parts of Telangana, devotees from adjacent states such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra also participated in jatara. Since Maharashtra has been witnessing a fresh surge in Covid-19 cases, authorities and some devotees were a worried lot.

Jagan Mohan, a devotee waiting in the queue to have a darshan of Lord Shiva, said it was not possible to maintain social distancing in such huge congregations. “Nobody knows how many people participating in the jatara are infected by the coronavirus. It is advisable to wear a face mask to protect oneself from the pandemic,” he added. Jagan Mohan is a native of Godavarikhani in Peddapalli district.

Another devotee from Armoor of Nizamabad district, Gangadhar said a majority of the people are under the impression that the Covid issue was over and that the virus had become ineffective. “That is why people are moving in groups without maintaining social distance and wearing masks,” he added.

The turnout of pilgrims for the jatara, however, has declined this time around. While the Covid scare was one reason, another factor was that a majority of people visited the shrine in the last four weeks on the occasion of Sammakka-Sarakkala punnam, a priest said.

 

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