Flouting COVID-19 safety protocols, thousands of people gathered at a ground in Kharagpur in Paschim Medinipur district during the annual Dussehra ceremony with the video of the event going viral on social media in past two days.
The Dussehra festival at Kharagpur attracts thousands of people every year and is attended by people’s representatives, a senior district official said.
As the effigy of Ravana was being set ablaze on the sprawling ground on Monday evening, the day of Dussehra and Bijoya Dashami, the crowd swelled and physical distancing apparently went for a toss.
As the video of the huge crowd went viral on social media, Trinamool Congress MLA Pradip Sarkar, one of those behind the event and who was present on the occasion, admitted the crowd went beyond expectations.
Sarkar said the “Dussehra festival is integrated with the emotion and sentiments of people of Kharagpur, which has a cosmopolitan population comprising different communities.”
Rita Debnath, when asked why she wasn’t covering her nose, hit back saying she was finding it difficult to breathe with the mask on.
“Why just me, there are so many others who are not following protocols. This is the only time of the year I shop for my children and grandchildren…I can’t break that tradition, the woman, in her mid-60s, said outside a shop in Gariahat.
The Covid-19 death toll in West Bengal went past the 6,000-mark on Sunday with 64 more fatalities, even as a record number of 3,983 fresh cases pushed the tally to 3,21,036.
