Religious places to reopen from June 8; Here’s complete guidelines

Ever since the first lockdown was announced on March 24, religious places have been closed to maintain the social distancing norm and prevent the spread of COVID-19. On May 31, the centre announced Lockdown 5.0 with the implementation of Unlock 1.0 wherein religious places, shopping malls, restaurants, hotels and offices were said to reopen from June 8.

The Union Government, on Thursday, has issued SOP (Standard Operating Process)/guidelines for the religious places as it is all set to reopen.

The SOP issued for religious places are as follows:

• Aarogya Setu app is a must.
• Use of face masks/covers is mandatory.
• Spitting is strictly prohibited and can lead to a penalty.
• Practice hand washing with soap even when hands are not visibly dirty.
• People must maintain a minimum distance of 6 feet in public places as far as feasible.
• Cover mouth and nose while coughing/ sneezing with a tissue/handkerchief/flexed elbow and dispose of used tissues properly.
• No physical offerings like Prasad/distribution or a sprinkling of holy water, etc.to be allowed inside the religious place.
• Frequent cleaning and disinfection to be maintained by the management of the religious place.
• Entrance to have mandatory hand hygiene (sanitizer dispenser) and thermal screening provisions.
• Entry only if a person is using face cover/masks.
• Only asymptomatic persons shall be allowed on the premises.
• Touching of statues/idols / holy books etc. is prohibited.
• Given the potential threat of the spread of infection, as far as feasible recorded devotional music/songs may be played and choir or singing groups should not be allowed.
• Common prayer mats should be avoided and devotees should bring their prayer mat or piece of cloth which they may take back with them.
• Community kitchens/langars at religious places should follow physical distancing norms while preparing and distributing food.
• Avoid physical contact while greeting each other.
• Large gatherings/congregation continue to remain prohibited.

The coronavirus pandemic in India touched another new peak. The states witnessed the biggest jump in COVID-19 count with 9,851 new cases in the last 24 hours, taking the country tally to 2,26,770 and the death toll stands at 6,348.