Political Rallies, Religious Events Behind Rise in Covid Cases in India, Says WHO

The World Health Organization shared that the reason behind rising Covid cases in India is political rallies and religious events. In the past few months, there have been too many rallies held for election in which thousands of people took part.

In their weekly epidemiological report update, WHO said that “several religious and political mass gathering events which increased the social mixing” is behind the resurgence and acceleration in India. It further added that the cases with Covid variant have also increased in the country.

Earlier even Karnataka Leader of Opposition, Siddaramaiah pointed this out and shared that huge campaigns during the election and other religious events including Kumbh Mela acted as a catalyst in the spread of the Covid second wave.

Even though the situation is significantly worse and there is a risk of contracting the virus, many people are attending religious events and political rallies. The Kumbh Mela which was supposed to be a hush event this year took a dangerous turn and led to a further increase in the cases.

Also Read: After Madras High Court's Rap, EC Bans Victory Rallies by Political Parties

When it was reported that the Kumbh Mela received permission to be held this year, officials confirmed that things will proceed while following the COVID19 guidelines. People will adhere to wearing a mask and social distancing regulations. Cops will be present in case of an emergency. While this is what the Uttarakhand government said before the Mela began, it can certainly be seen that most of the rules were not followed.

When talking about the political events, the election saw many rallies and campaigning events. Leaders went around giving speeches to mass gatherings. Thousands of people flouted Covid rules and came to attend these rallies. Even after the election, it didn’t stop as ‘victory rallies’ were carried out by people.

Despite lockdown, night curfew and all the other restrictions, the cases in India seems to be on a rise. Medical experts believe that the situation will worsen for a few months but with pacing up of the vaccination process, it will start getting back to normal.