New Delhi: Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan on Sunday said “there is no need to congregate in large numbers to prove your faith or your religion. You can pray to your Gods at your homes. I will suggest that all of you celebrate festivals with your families.”

Participating in an interactive session in social media, he pointed out to Coronavirus which is still in rampage and said the country on Sunday crossed the 70-lakh mark in the overall number of COVID-19 cases, and stands slightly behind the United States of America, which is the worst sufferer, logging more than 76 lakh cases. 

But with Durga Puja, Dasara, Deepavali and Chhath Puja round the corner, there is concern about COVID-19 numbers spiking as people drop the use of all safety norms. On Oct. 6, Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan had told the media that there has been a “huge spike in cases in Kerala for several days and a lot of it has to do with the Onam festivities.”

Dr. Harsha Vardhan said large gatherings are already happening. A shopping rush has already started in Bengal and images from the city’s key market areas show huge crowds where many people have even ditched the mask.  Ahead of Diwali, a similar situation is likely to play out in Delhi and the rest of North India. “If we are careless in following Coronavirus safety norms while celebrating festivals, the COVID-19 situation in the country will again worsen, and can  create massive problems for us,” he warned.

“No religious leaders of any religion say that festivals should be celebrated by putting lives in danger… no Gods say you need to go to big pandals to pray. If you know there is fire outside and you still go out in the fire in the name of religion — what’s the point of such festivals,” the Health Minister said in a strong message.

Earlier on Sunday, the Government said the country has crossed a ‘landmark milestone’, as data showed 60 lakh  recoveries from the novel Coronavirus. The 24-hour figures have also come down to an  average of 72,000 to 74,000 from the earlier 90,000-plus  figure.

With 74,383 new infections, India’s COVID-19 tally stood at 70,53,806 on Sunday morning. Over the last 24 hours, India reported 918 deaths linked to the virus, taking the total number of fatalities to 1,08,334. For the third day in a row the active cases of COVID-19 remained below 9 lakh, the Government bulletin added.