COVID-19 negative report mandatory for Kumbh attendees; Centre issues SOP

New Delhi: The Centre has issued standard operating protocols (SOP) for the upcoming Kumbh mela at Haridwar in Uttarakhand on Sunday (January 24) amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

As per the SOP, all devotees desirous of attending the mela must register with Uttarakhand government. They also have to obtain a compulsory medical certificate from Community health centre or district hospital or medical college in their states.

The National Security Guard (NSG) Commandos will also be deployed at the mela. Uttarakhand Police Commissioner Ashok Kumar said, "to take action against the anti-national elements, two NSG teams will be deployed during Kumbh Mela. The NSG teams will also train our Anti-Terrorist Squad,” after meeting with Major General VS Ranade, NSG (IG Operations).

Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government authorised Garhwal Commissioner and the Kumbh Mela official to allocate works up to worth Rs 5 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively to speed up preparations for the mela. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Friday (January 22) evening, PTI quoted Cabinet minister Madan Kaushik as saying.

The Uttarakhand Government has also asked the Centre for 20,000 additional vaccines in the wake of Kumbh Mela. The state COVID-19 Control Room chief Dr Abhishek Tripathi divulged that the state government has sent a proposal for the same to the centre.