At the feast, devotees wash away their sins in the holy waters of the river, which apparently on an auspicious day like Monday becomes an “amrita” – the nectar of immortality.
According to police insp. At least 650,000 people dived into the river early Monday. Genl Sanjay Gunjyal. Throughout the day, there will be about 11,000 to 18,000 people in the water at any one time, spread across the 15 major riverbanks, said Mukesh Thakur, a senior police officer.
“Social distance is very difficult,” Gunjyal said. “If we try to enforce it, it could lead to a rush – which is why, although we want to, we cannot implement social distance at these riverbanks.”
He added that authorities are appealing to people to always wear masks and follow their behavior according to Covid. ‘
India on Monday reported 168,912 new cases, according to data from the country’s Ministry of Health, the highest one-day figure for the sixth consecutive day.
The second wave, which started in March and accelerated rapidly over the past week, surpassed India’s first wave last year, when daily falls peaked at 97,000 in September.
Try to limit the risk
In Haridwar, Uttarakhand state, authorities have put in place measures to try to limit the risk during Kumbh Mela.
These include artificial intelligence cameras at various riverbanks and 15,000 security personnel deployed to handle crowd control, Thakur said.
“The camera has sensors that alert us when the number of cars in parking areas or pedestrian crossings reaches a certain threshold and we can communicate with people on the ground to guide the crowds,” Thakur said. “The cameras can also see if people are not wearing masks and the officers on the ground immediately issue tickets to the people.”
Gunjyal, however, said it was impossible to hand out tickets to everyone on Monday because of the large crowd, with photos showing many people wearing the rules of the mask.
Other restrictions were aimed at preventing those carrying the virus from reaching the festival.
Before the festival-goers entered Haridwar, they had to register online and submit a medical certificate confirming their health condition. Visitors coming from countries with rising infections had to produce negative Covid-19 test results, and checkpoints were set up at transportation centers to perform random tests on people passing through.
All these restrictions may not be enough to prevent the virus from spreading among the masses of people who eat, wash and pray close to each other. Haridwar is already starting to see infections increase; According to Uttarakhand Health Department data, 2,209 cases have been reported in the city since the festival began on April 1.
“The second wave of coronavirus is underway in the country … also in Uttarakhand the impact of (Covid) has increased, more than 500 cases have started coming in daily,” Ashok Kumar, Uttarakhand police director, said earlier this month. people to follow safety guidelines.
“Let’s not get to a point where we need a reconnection, because it’s harmful to everyone.”