Officials fret as Malana villagers refuse vaccine citing deity’s diktat
The second wave of Covid-19 pandemic may have led to a scramble for vaccines across the country but all residents of the remote village of Malana in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh have flatly refused to get vaccinated, citing the will of the local deity.
Not a single resident has been inoculated despite government health workers trekking 7km to the village on alternate days to administer the vaccine.
“I’ve been trying to convince the villagers, but they refuse citing the deity’s diktat. In 2015, it took me three months to convince mothers to get their children vaccinated. But this time, not a single person in the village has come forward for vaccination and my attempts to convince them has proved futile,”
says Nirmala Devi, an accredited social health activist (ASHA).
Panchayat secretary Tek Chand says that he has been trying to convince the villagers to get vaccinated since the government launched the drive for senior citizens in the first phase.
“They have immense faith in the deity and it’s difficult to convince them. I have tried to educate panchayat representatives during our meetings but in vain,” he says.
“The final decision will be taken by the village parliament.
Its meeting is to be held shortly. I’m trying to persuade residents, too,” says panchayat pradhan Raju Ram.
No hotels allowed in village vicinity
Last year, the villagers, who consider themselves descendants of Greek king Alexander and one of the oldest democracies in the world, banned the setting up of hotels and restaurants in the vicinity of Malana that has more than 20 guest houses. According to them, the local deity, Jamdagni Rishi or Jamlu Devta, had prohibited the entry of outsiders after the Covid-19 outbreak. The village had isolated itself a week before the statewide lockdown was announced on March 24, 2020, to contain the spread of coronavirus. The Malana panchayat comprises two villages of Saura Behad and Dhara Behad and has a total population of 2,041 in 475 households, comprising 1,039 men and 1,002 women. The main occupation of villagers is sheep rearing and agriculture. All decisions for the village are taken by its two houses, Jyestahang, the upper house, and Shestang, the lower house, but Jamlu Devta’s verdict is final for the villagers.
Kullu going slow
“Himachalis have faith in mystical powers of deities. The deity culture is a part of our daily life but at the same time the safety of people is of importance. Residents are reluctant to get inoculated but I’ll try to persuade them again,” says Kullu legislator Sunder Thakur.
It’s not Malana alone, the vaccination drive in Kullu district has been slow. Himachal Pradesh has administered a total of 21,22,894 doses to 16,79,128 people of which 4,25,766 have been given the second jab as well. Those vaccinated include 81,996 health care workers.
Of them, 68,686 have been administered the second shot as well. The number of frontline workers given the jab is 54,025, including 41,419 having the second dose.
A maximum of 4,55,448 people have been vaccinated in Kangra, the most populous district, while a total of 3,49,278 have got the jab in Mandi and 2,74,986 in Shimla.
A further rundown of the data shows that a total of 8,66,558 people in the age group 45-64 years have been vaccinated. Of them, 66,073 been given the second dose of the vaccine. A total of 6,94,549 people of 60+ age have also been vaccinated and 2,49,588 of them have got the second dose.
The vaccination of the 18-44 age group will start on Monday.