NEW DELHI: The Catholic Churches belonging to Delhi Archdiocese decided not to open churches in the national capital and nine districts of Haryana at least till June 28.
Archbishop Anil Couto told The Morning Standard that the decision was taken considering the rising cases number of cases in Delhi and is applicable only to Catholic churches.
However, on Monday some places of worship re-opened after a span of over two and half months. Worshippers were seen paying obeisance and praying for respite from the pandemic while practicing social distancing with sanitisation measures in place.
The famous Chhatarpur temple complex opened around 8.45 am and nearly 300 devotees ended up visiting within the first hour, temple authorities said.“We have set up a sanitisation tunnel at the temple entrance and are using a thermal gun to screen people. No prasad and flowers are being allowed,” Kishor Chawla, CEO, Chhatarpur temple management committee, said.
People also visited other prominent places of worship such a Hanuman temple at Connaught Place, Kalkaji temple and Jhandewala to name a few.The historic Jama Masjid also opened its doors for worshippers with safety measures in place.
Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid Syed Ahmed Bukhari said all the guidelines of government for social distancing were put in place to prevent the spread of the virus during congregational prayers. .
Mosques have asked devotees not to come for early morning ‘Fajr’ and late evening ‘Isha’ namaz as they are beyond the curfew timing of 9 PM to 5 AM.