COVID-19 scare: Karnataka bans processions on Ganesh Chaturthi, check full SOPs here

The Karnataka government banned processions during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival and said distribution of food and prasad will not be allowed.

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New Delhi: The Karnataka government on Sunday (September 5) announced guidelines for celebrating the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi in the state amid COVID-19 pandemic. 

The state government banned processions during the festival and said distribution of food and prasad will not be allowed. For districts witnessing more than 2% positivity rate, no functions can take place, ANI reported. 

The government capped the limit of people allowed at celebrations and Ganesha idol immersion to 20. Night curfew will remain in effect during the 5-day celebration of the festival in the state. No celebrations will be allowed after 9 pm. 

No processions will be allowed. Only eco-friendly Ganesha idols will be allowed. Distribution of food & prasad will not be allowed during Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations. No function to take place in districts with more than 2% positivity rate: Karnataka govt — ANI (@ANI) September 5, 2021

Last week, the Centre had extended the ongoing COVID-19 guidelines till September 30 and asked all states and union territories to ensure no large gatherings take place during the festival season. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla had said that overall pandemic situation now appears to be "largely stable" at the national level, except for the localised spread reported in a few states.

On Saturday, Karnataka reported 983 new COVID-19 infections and 21 fatalities, taking the total infection tally to 29,54,047 and the death toll to 37,401. With 1,620 discharges, the total number of recoveries in the state reached 28,98,874. The active cases in the state stand at 17,746. The positivity rate on Saturday was 0.61 per cent, while the Case Fatality Rate (CFR) was 2.13 per cent.

Meanwhile, as Kerala continues to record a worrying surge in daily COVID-19 cases, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday told officials to ensure 100 percent vaccination across all villages lying within the 20 km range of the Kerala border. In a meeting with the District Commissioners (DC) and Superintendents of Police (SP) and district In-charge ministers of bordering districts of Kerala, Bommai said vaccination in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Kodagu, Chamarajanagar and Hassan should be increased by 35 per cent, IANS reported. 

(With agency inputs)