Devotees back to place of worship
People follow social distancing, wear masks at places of worship; some pray from outside
Temples were largely empty on Monday, the first day they were allowed to open after more than 75 days. In spite of most temples implementing distancing and other sanitation guidelines, devotees seemed to want to avoid the risk of venturing out of their homes.
The popular TTD Venkateswara Swamy temple in Himayatnagar saw not more than 700 devotees until 5 pm, according to employees and priests there. Devotees were made to stand in circles painted on the floor at least a metre apart. Security guards checked their temperature before allowing them inside. Children and the old were stopped at the door. Priests were largely free since they weren’t allowed to give prasadam, tirtham or place the satagopuram on devotees’ heads. Devotees weren’t even allowed to ring the temple bell.
Pankaj, who had accompanied his father Pappu Patil to the temple, said that during the lockdown the two would religiously drive past the temple and pay their respects from outside. Pankaj said he was glad the temple was open again.
At Shankar Math near Nallakunta, there were hardly any devotees. A security guard said people in the neighbourhood were scared after a nearby pooja samagri shop owner reportedly died of Covid-19. Not more than 30 people came to the temple in the morning, he said.
The Venkateswara temple at Chikkadpally saw around 100 devotees until the evening. Right at the entrance, devotees were provided a foot-operated sanitiser dispenser, which many of them were confused by. Narayana, one of the priests, said, “On a
normal weekday, we would see at least a thousand devotees. I believe there is a lot of fear among them. I wonder how it will be on Saturday, when we usually see our biggest crowds.”
Similar scenes were witnessed at most other temples. At the Ganapathi temple near Indira Park, Domalguda, there were fewer than 10 devotees in the morning, said the cleaning staff.
At the Peddamma temple in Jubilee Hills, staff took
strict social distancing measures. Devotees were required to wear masks and made to go through thermal screening at the entrance.
At the TTD temple in Jubilee Hills, Governor Tamilisai Sounderrajan was one of the more prominent devotees. After her darshan, she spoke to media persons and appealed to the public to exercise caution before visiting any temple.
● AT THE PEDDAMMA temple in Jubilee Hills, staff took strict social distancing measures. Devotees were required to wear masks and made to go through thermal screening at the entrance.
● AT THE entrance, devotees were provided a foot-operated sanitiser dispenser, which many of them were confused