Jama Masjid reopening today, ensuring no. of people attending namaaz a big challenge
NEW DELHI: Jama Masjid is all set to open its gates on Monday but with a whole set of new guidelines. The grand mosque in Delhi has made elaborate arrangements to allow the Muslims to offer Namaz after almost two and a half months since the day it was closed due the
lockdown. However, the biggest challenge would be ensuring the number of people attending the namaaz inside the mosque.
“Once the doors of the mosque are opened it would not be possible for us to keep a check on the number of people attending the prayers inside,
limiting the number of people might turn out to be impractical not just for mosques but other places of worship as well,” syed Ahmed Bukhari, Shahi Imam Jama Masjid said.
Shahi Imam Jama Masjid has said that they have made some changes for the safety of the Namazis in the wake of Coronavirus outbreak.
“We have removed all the carpets from the mosques to reduce the chances of someone with infection passing on the disease to others. People have been advised to carry their personal Janamaaz (prayer mats) to offer prayers inside the mosque,” said Syed Ahmed Bukhari, Shahi Imam Jama Masjid.
To maintain the social distancing inside the mosque stickers are put on the floor ascertaining that two persons don’t stand close to each other and there should be a gap of atleast an arms length between two namazis.
“We also request people to perform Wuzu (ablutions) at home before coming to the mosque as there would be chances of infection if people do it in the mosque. The water in the vazu tank also should not be used as this might amplify chances of infection,” Bukhari said.
The Wuzu tank in the Jama Masjid courtyard has been emptied as a precautionary measure. Only those who are not the residents of the walled city might do wuzu at the taps and that too maintain the required distance.
It would be interesting to see the number of people who arrive on the first day of the opening of the mosque on Monday and if everything goes as planned.