After Shirdi temple, Siddhivinayak in Mumbai is closed till further notice, amid COVID-19 surge

Mumbai: The Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai has been closed for 'darshan' on Monday since at 8 pm till further notice due to a sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the city, the temple authorities decided. Though, regular 'aarti' and 'puja' will be performed and put on a webcast.

The temple administration took the decision after Maharashtra government announced a partial lockdown in the state amid rising coronavirus cases.

The state Cabinet on Sunday decided to put severe restrictions in place which are similar to the country-wide lockdown last year. The curbs will remain in place till April 30 and are a part of ‘Break the Chain Restrictions’. As per the Maharashtra government notification, religious places will remain closed.

Also, weekend lockdowns will come into force and Section 144 will be imposed all through the day. Citizens cannot leave their home without a valid reason between 8 pm and 7 am. Only essential services are excluded from these curfew rules.

Maharashtra is the worst-hit state in the second wave of the coronavirus crisis. On Monday, Mumbai reported as many as 9,857 new cases taking the overall caseload to 4,62,302. As many as 74,522 are active cases with 21 more fatalities, the death toll has reached 11,797.