Assam Government Issues New Guidelines for Raas, Chhath puja celebration

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• Nov 9, 2021 | Deleted

Guwahati: The Assam State Disaster Management Authority (ASDMA) has issued a set of special guidelines for the celebration of Chhath Puja and Raas festival which are going to be celebrated in the state in November.

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The guidelines directed all the puja committees to engage volunteers at the site of celebrations with necessary guidelines to the volunteers with Dos and Don'ts. Moreover, all the places and routes leading to the celebration of sites and ghats should be identified, sanitized and checked before start of the festival.

The guidelines issued to the Raas festival organizing committees are as follows:

1. All organizers of the Raas Committee must take permission from the District Administration for organizing Raas festival 2021 as per existing rules.
2. The district administration will convene a meeting of all Raas committees for a detailed briefing on the protocol issued by the government before permitting to ensure compliance with COVID protocols
3. Children below the age of ten years and senior citizens above the age of 65 shall not be allowed to perform in Raas.
4. Entry and exit gates must be separate.
5. The actors, participants, volunteers and organizing committee members shall have to undergo COVID test before the start of the festival
6. No fairs, roadside shops, food stall, temporary stalls etc. will be allowed during the festival across Assam.

Guidelines for the Chhath Puja organizing committees are as follows:   

1. Only five persons per family are allowed at a time in the puja ghats by maintaining a social distance and other protocols of COVID-19. The puja committees will ensure that only the religious rituals will be observed.
2. There shall be no Melas/cultural events in connection with the celebration of puja.
3. The puja committees will not allow any vendor, temporary tea stall/chat house in the premises of the puja pandal.
4. All visitors to puja location shall be subjected to thermal scanning by puja organizing committees and no person with any symptom related to COVID-19 shall be allowed to enter the puja locations.
5. All organizers and volunteers must be at least vaccinated with one dose of vaccine and preferably with two doses of vaccination.
6. In case any person/visitor to Puja pandal is suspected to be symptomatic with COVID-19, it will be the responsibility of the Puja organizers to inform the nearest Government medical facility and arrange for shifting of such persons to the nearest COVID treatment centre.
7. Chhath puja committees have to strictly monitored the social distancing, wearing mask, etc.