HYDERABAD: Lakhs of people such as potters, florists and Pothurajus, who depend on the month-long Bonalu festival for their annual earnings, would lose their income this year, the Bhagyanagar Bonalu Ustava Samithi, in a press release issued on Wednesday. It said many who are actively involved in the carnival would be plunged into poverty.
As the Telangana government withdrew the deployment of police personnel for the Bonalu procession, it is highly likely that people would celebrate the festival without following social distancing norms, the Samithi said. It said while all places of worship remain open for the public by following the social distancing protocol, the State government’s decision to not conduct Bonalu is against the provisions of the Disaster Management Act, 2005.