By Matters India Reporter
New Delhi, June 4, 2020: Persons aged above 65, those with comorbidities, pregnant woman and children below the age of 10 years should stay at home, say new norms for opening religious places after more than two months of nationwide lockdown.
The federal Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on June 4 issued fresh Standard Operation Procedures (SOPs) for religious places where large number of people frequent for spiritual solace.
The ministry plans to let places of worship open under strict rules.
Under the guidelines, religious places and places of worship in containment zones will remain closed. “Only those outside containment zones will be allowed to open up during the ongoing,” the health ministry said in a statement.
Even those green places should be avoided by people above 65 years of age, persons with co-morbidities, and pregnant women. According to the rules, these people should leave home only for essential and health purposes.
The rules prohibit touching of statues, idols and holy books, besides large gatherings inside places of worship. According to the SOPs, spitting should be strictly prohibited.
For all the establishments, government has recommended ensuring proper social distancing and disinfection of spaces and wearing of masks.
“Installation and use of Aarogya Setu App shall be advised to all,” it added.
The ministry also advises use of recorded devotional music and songs instead of live choir in places of worship. It rules out use of common prayer mats and advises individuals to bring their own mat or piece of cloth.
The SOP also bans physical offerings such as prasad and distribution or sprinkling of holy water inside the religious place.
Community kitchens, langars, and ‘Ann-Daan’ at religious places should follow physical distancing norms while preparing and distributing food.
According to the SOPs, all religious places should ensure hand hygiene (sanitizer dispenser) and make mandatory the thermal screening at the entrance. They should allow only asymptomatic persons in the premises and that too with faces covered with masks.
Audio and video clips to spread awareness on preventive measures for COVID-19 should be regularly played while posters on preventive measures should to be displayed prominently, it said.
The ministry also advises religious places to stagger the visit of their devotees.
“Foot wears to be preferably taken-off inside own vehicle. If needed, they should be kept in separate slots for each individual/family by the persons themselves. Any shops, stalls, cafeteria etc, outside and within the premises shall follow social distancing norms at all times,” the SOPs stated.
The SOPs underlined maintaining physical distancing of a minimum of six feet at all times when queuing up for entry and washing hand and feet with soap and water before entering the premises.
“For air-conditioning/ventilation, the guidelines of CPWD shall be followed which inter alia emphasizes that the temperature setting of all air conditioning devices should be in the range of 24-30 C, relative humidity should be in the range of 40- 70 percent, intake of fresh air should be as much as possible and cross ventilation should be adequate,” it said.
The management of the religious places must ensure frequent cleaning and disinfection of the floors and other surfaces. In case of a suspect or confirmed case in the premises, the ill person should be placed in a room or area and isolated from others and the nearest medical facility (hospital/clinic) should be informed, it said.
A risk assessment will be undertaken by the designated public health authority (district RRT/treating physician) and accordingly further action would be initiated regarding management of case, his/her contacts and need for disinfection, the SOP pointed out. The premises should be disinfected if the person is found positive, it added.