GUWAHATI: Devotees will no longer need a Covid-negative report to visit Kamakhya, temple authorities said on Saturday. However, wearing a mask and maintaining social distancing norms will be a must for all.
“You won’t need to show a
negative report for
Covid-19 for Darshan from Saturday at the Kamakhya temple. We had already requested the authorities to do away with the mandatory testing rule before Union home minister Amit Shah’s visit. However, we got the nod now and re-framed the rules accordingly,” Mohit Chandra Sarma, doloi (head) of the
Kamakhya Temple Trust Board, said.
Initially, devotees had to undergo a rapid antigen test at the medical camp organized by the health department near the entry point at Nursery (Kamakhya Foothill). Sarma said after reaching the (Kamakhya) hilltop, the devotees were required to show their reports to the security personnel which eventually led to massive gatherings at that point. “During the first day of the new year, the nursery was jam-packed and it was difficult to manage the crowd. A chaotic situation arose and many people, who did not have Covid-negative reports entered to do
parikrama as it was not possible for us to manage the crowd,” Sarma added.
He informed that thousands had visited the temple on the first day of the year. He also said as schools and colleges have already opened, there is no need of producing the Covid-19 reports to enter the premises.
“Everything is back to normal now in Assam. Schools have opened from Friday and strict monitoring is on at the airports and railway stations. So, after proper consultations, we have reached the decision to discontinue mandatory tests for entry,” Sarma said.
The temple was reopened for devotees to perform parikrama on October 11 after remaining shut for almost six months owing to the pandemic.