The Kamakhya temple, one of the prominent Shakti Peethas in the country, is all set to reopen from Sunday; however, devotees will only be able to perform parikrama (circumambulation ritual of sacred places). The Devalaya Management Committee of the temple has decided to open the complex gates for the devotees just to perform parikrama.
A statement issued by the committee on Saturday states that every devotee will get 15 minutes to perform the ritual to maintain the social distancing. And as of now, the main doors of the temple leading to the sanctum sanctorum will remain closed due to COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a spokesperson from the temple management committee, “The inner sanctum sanctorum will remain closed. This has been done as per discussion with the district administration. The devotees and others will have to follow Covid guidelines issued by the government in order to prevent the spread of the virus.”
The statement also stated that on normal days, the complex gate will remain open from 8 AM till sunset but the timings may change during Navratri and Durga Puja festival, due this month.
#KamakhyaTemple #Guwahati
To be opened from 08 AM till the Sunset, only for “Parikrama” from 11th Oct 2020.Main Puja Place inside shall be remained closed for Devotees.
All the Guidelines, such as Face Mask, Social Distancing etc related to #CoronaVirus need to be followed. pic.twitter.com/biHKhXLyrS
— RajeshC “Lone Walker” (@RajeshGuwahati) October 10, 2020
The statement further mentions that the devotees will have to undergo a rapid antigen test at the medical camp organised by the health department near the entry point at Nursery (Kamakhya Foothill). And those with negative COVID-19 results (taken within the last 3 days) will be allowed inside the temple complex after showing their reports.The security persons will check the reports of every devotee and only after that will they be allowed to proceed. An entry card will be issued from Annakshetra office set right in front of Chinnamasta/Kameswar Mandir and with that card devotees will be able to proceed to the Devalaya complex. Then the devotees will have to undergo thermal screening and sanitation at the main gate.
The temple was closed on March 20 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.