Assam Govt Issues Guidelines for Chhath Puja, Raas Festival

The Assam government has issued new set of guidelines for Chhath Puja and Raas festival. All the places and routes leading to the celebration of sites/ghats and river banks etc. should be identified, sanitized and checked.

The Assam government has directed the puja committees to engage volunteers at the site of celebrations and necessary guidelines to the volunteers may be given with Do's and Dont's.

The other guidelines issued by the Assam government for Chhath Puja are:

• Only five persons per family are allowed at a time in the puja ghats and maintain a social distance and other protocols of COVID-19. The puja committees will ensure that only the religious rituals will be observed
• There shall be no mela or cultural events in connection with the celebration of puja
• The chhath puja committees will not allow any vendor, temporary tea stall/chat house in the vicinity of the puja pandal
• All visitors to puja location shall be subjected to thermal scanning by puja organizers and no person with any symptom related to COVID-19 shall be allowed to enter the puja locations
• Strict compliance of social distancing, wearing mask etc are to be strictly maintained
• All organizers and volunteers must be at least vaccinated with one dose of vaccine and preferably with two doses of vaccination
• In case any person or individual visiting 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

Guidelines for Raas Festival

• All organizers of the Raas Committee must take permission from the district administration for organizing Raas festival
• The district administration will convene a meeting of all Raas committees/organizers for a detailed briefing on the protocol or guidelines issued by the government before giving permission in order to ensure compliance with COVID protocols
• Children below the age of ten years and senior citizens above the age of 65 shall not be allowed to perform in Raas
• The actors, participants, volunteers and organizing committee members shall have to undergo COVID test prior to the start of the festival
• Entry and exit gates must be separate
• No melas, fairs, roadside shops, food stall, temporary stalls etc will be allowed during the festival across Assam

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