Janmashtami amid COVID-19: Devotees not allowed inside Noida ISKCON temple

Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) Temple in Noida's Sector 33 will not allow devotees inside its premises on Janmashtami this year, Brajjan Ranjan Das, a temple official said on Tuesday.

"Devotees will not be allowed inside the temple this year in view of the coronavirus. The 4 am aarti, guru pooja, darshan and kirtan will be live-streamed online on our social media handles. Even the fancy dress competition, quiz and other activities will be held online," Das told .

He added, "For activities that require interaction, we will be using online video conferencing tools like Google Meet."

This year, Janmashtami is being celebrated on August 11.

As per data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Uttar Pradesh has reported a total of 47,878 active cases and 2120 deaths. So far, 76,724 people have recovered from the disease.

( With inputs from ANI )