(ANSA) - NEW DELHI, APRIL 12 - Tens of thousands of Hindu devotees are flocking to Haridwar, India, for the ritual bath in the Ganges River, on the occasion of the crucial day of the Kumbha Mela pilgrimage, in total violation of anti Covid, which is hitting the country with an extraordinarily aggressive second wave.
Today India has recorded the highest number of infections in one day, 168,000 new cases, and has become the second most affected country after the United States.
The authorities of Uttarakhand, the Himalayan state where the sacred city is located, where the pilgrimage flows every three years, are unable to enforce the rules: "Due to the huge crowd, it is practically impossible to make fines", admitted the Inspector General of Sanjay Gunjyal Police.
Access to the river is allowed only to those who show an inegativity test and wear a mask, but, once inside, people crowd along the banks.
Various media are rising up against this "madness", as isocials react with a wave of criticism towards devotees, believing that the purifying bath will protect them from the Coronavirus.
But it's not just the pilgrimage that is alarming: elections are underway in five key states in India, and parties everywhere are organizing massive electoral demonstrations.
This morning Prime Minister Modi himself held a rally in Bardhaman, West Bengal, in front of tens of thousands of supporters: all very close to each other and without a mask.
(HANDLE).