India – Hundreds test positive for Covid19 at Kumbh Mela
Hundreds of devotees, including nine top saints, have tested positive for Covid-19 in India’s Haridwar city where huge crowds have gathered to participate in the Kumbh Mela festival.
More than three million Hindu devotees bathed in the Ganges river on Tuesday to mark one of the most auspicious days of the two-month-long festival.
The virus was detected in more than 1,000 people in just 48 hours in the city of Haridwar, which lies along the holy river where the Kumbh Mela is being held.
The nation, on Wednesday reported more than 184,000 infections in the past 24 hours which is the biggest single day rise since the start of the pandemic.
Under normal circumstances, the Kumbh Mela continues for nearly four months but this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the duration of the congregation has been curtailed to one month. This year it was going to be held from April 1 to April 30. But due to the current circumstances, the Kumbh Mela is likely to close itself.
