Monuments reopen, but witness minimal footfall
LESS THAN 60 AND 30 PEOPLE VISITED HUMAYUN’S TOMB AND PURANA QILA. BEFORE LOCKDOWN, THESE MONUMENTS SAW OVER 10,000 VISITORS PER DAY
NEW DELHI: Delhi’s historical monuments reopened their doors on Monday after a gap of three months but footfall remained abysmally low amid the Covid-19 pandemic and on a day the city crossed 100,000 positive cases. The monuments had been shut on March 17 as the country locked down to contain its spread.
Popular monuments such as Humayun’s Tomb, Purana Qila, Safdarjung Tomb and Qutub Minar, which reopened on Monday, witnessed low footfall. Red Fort will reopen on Tuesday as per its regular schedule.
For instance, less than 60 and 30 people visited Humayun’s Tomb and Purana Qila, respectively, till 5pm on Monday. Till 6pm, Qutub Minar had a little over 100 visitors. Before lockdown, Red Fort, Qutub Minar and Humayun’s Tomb saw over 10,000 visitors per day.
On Monday, visitors were seen taking a stroll on the mowed grass lawns at these places, clicking selfies, or resting on the footsteps. Security guards on the premises ensured people had their masks on at all times.
Several visitors spotted at these sites on Monday said they ended up there by chance. Dheeraj Deshmukh, 23, a UPSC aspirant from Maharashtra, said he had not stepped out anywhere for around three months.
“I was passing by Purana Qila on my way to run an errand when I noticed it was open. I’m glad I decided to visit the place. It’s not crowded like it usually is. The rain made the experience better,” he said.
On Monday, Delhi witnessed light rainfall. The city recorded a maximum temperature of 36.2°C and a minimum temperature of 26.2°C, according to IMD.
Of the 171 monuments protected under the Archaeological Survey of India in Delhi, Red Fort, Humayun’s Tomb and Qutub Minar are on the list of UNESCO’s world heritage sites.
Preventive measures have been put in place in the wake of the pandemic, including compulsory e-ticketing, installation of thermal scanners and sanitiser dispensers at gates, a cap on the number of visitors, maintenance of records to help with contact tracing, the mandatory wearing of masks, and digital payment. Visitors need to show their e-tickets while exiting the monuments as well. The tickets can be booked through the ASI website.
Asif Khan Dehlvi, the founder of Delhi Karavan, which conducts heritage walks across the city, said that though people needed such events in times of a pandemic, they would not be conducted anytime soon. “With the high number of cases being recorded in Delhi, we don’t plan to conduct any heritage walk till the curve flattens here,” he said.
Ramit Mitra, the founder of Delhi By Foot, however, plans to start a walk next week depending on the situation in the city.
“We will put some measures in place to ensure that social distancing is maintained at all times. We will use microphones and loud speakers and not include more than 10 people in a group,” he said.