Starting Monday, when lockdown norms will ease further, many temples in Kerala, including the famed Sabarimala temple and Guruvayoor Sree Krishna temple, will open their doors to devotees, with restricted entry. Kerala Minister Kadakampally Surendran listed out the regulations for the two famed temples in Kerala, on Saturday.
Kadakampally Surendran, the state Minister for Devasoms (the body that oversees various temples in the state), said only 600 people will be allowed to offer prayers in a day at Guruvayoor temple. "Entry will be only for those who register in advance. Six hundred devotees can offer prayers per day. A maximum of 60 weddings will be allowed in the temples, and for each wedding, only 10 will be allowed entry," he said. The conventional VIP darshan at the Guruvayoor temple will also not be available.
"At Sabarimala, all those who wish to offer prayers, have to get online registration. In an hour, only 200 people will get darshan," said Surendran and added that the traditional dip in the Pamba river will not be allowed. There will also be no provision for an overnight stay in the temple premises.
All those arriving from other states will have to come with a certificate stating that they are coronavirus-negative.
While the Guruvayoor temple in Thrissur district will open on Tuesday, Sabarimala in Pathanamthitta will open on June 14 at 5 pm and close on June 19 at 10 pm.
The Kerala chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA) had recently asked the state government not to open religious institutions as that can trigger another spike in COVID-19 cases in the state.
The state government decided to open places of worship following the Centre’s direction that religious institutions should be open after June 8.
Meanwhile, a majority of mosques in Ernakulam district and a few in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode will remain closed. Ernakulam Central Joint Mahallu Coordination Committee and Kochi Taluk Central Jamaat Council have decided not to open the mosques in the district, reports ANI.
The Palayam Juma Mosque in Thiruvananthapuram and the Palayam Muhiyudheen Palli in Kozhikode will also remain closed for some more time, officials of the mosques had said.
(With IANS inputs)
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