Basanti Puja idol immersion procession done with mask on amidst Corona fear

On Wednesday, this year’s Basanti puja ritual was officially completed on the holy occasion of Ram Navami. The idol immersion ritual was completed in a small ceremony on Thursday. Although no separate rules and regulations were announced this time on behalf of the administration, the state government had a Covid protocol active throughout the state. According to the official SoP, no more than 20 people can gather together in any religious ceremony. Since idol immersion is a religious ritual, this rule was applicable in this case also and the people did not seem to violate it. Almost everyone danced happily with vermilion or other colours on their bodies and walked towards the immersion ghat, but they still had masks on their faces, which was never seen before. 

That day, the idol immersion procession started in the morning and continued throughout the day. Although the government has not stopped the movement of the people yet, there is a panic in the minds of the people about the 6 pm restriction. So everyone completed the idol immersion ritual in the daytime. Besides, all the idols were not allowed to enter the ghat at the same time. All of them entered separately with their idols one by one and left quickly after the immersion. Although the government and the administration have imposed the responsibility on the people, in almost all cases the people have shown awareness in the process of immersion.

The most stringent law during the Corona situation is the Disaster Management Act. The District Disaster Management department will decide how many people will be present at any event at any given time and what action will be taken against those who fail to follow as such. The department official Shamim Ahmed Lashkar said, “No separate rules have been made for the immersion ritual, but the whole process has been monitored to ensure that the Covid Protocol is not violated.” How much attention has been paid to whether anyone is breaking the protocol? While answering, Shamim said, “We have to fulfil many responsibilities all at once, so we were not in a position to appoint a separate officer in this regard. But I believe that the ordinary people have followed the protocol responsibly.”