Diwali is a festival of marry time in which people visit friends and exchange gifts, this is a festival where you open your arms to eating sweets and all the delicacies that come our way. But this year, Diwali is a bit different for all of us. You need to take a few precautions to stay safe from COVID-19.
According to Dr. P Venkata Krishnan, internal medicine, Paras Hospital, “During the pandemic, there are a few precautions that should be taken by everybody while celebrating Diwali. Since Diwali is a social festival, people tend to visit friends and relatives and exchange gifts. Families come together to celebrate it. They may forget the present situation. People should avoid social contacts as much as possible during this festive season.”
“Too many people are coming together and breaking the social distances and the protocols for security. They don’t ensure sanitisation. A significant population of COVID-19 patients are asymptomatic. You cannot recognize them by the symptoms of fever, cough and cold. Hence,, it advisable to stay indoors,” he said.
“Instead of exchanging gifts, one can exchange online payments in order that one gets to shop for what he/she wants to, instead of a hard and fast gift being given. So this way, the mobility is reduced. Online greeting cards can also be given as gifts,” Dr. Krishnan suggested this manner of preventing COVID-19 infection.
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He explained, how to take necessary steps when you go to the market for Diwali shopping-
• When one goes to the market, it is important to maintain a safe distance from others and if the marketplace is extremely crowded, better not go to such an area. Virus concentration is most likely to be high in such closed spaces.
• One should wear masks and gloves, as one might not know how many people have checked the object.
• Try traditional way of namaste rather than shaking hands when you meet someone.
• Social gathering should be avoided. Try to catch up with the family online through a video call or Zoom meetings.
• We need to protect ourselves until the vaccine comes, and there is no other way to be safe from the virus
• Social distancing, maintain personal hygiene, wearing masks, sanitisation, using gloves and following the guidelines provided by the government are the ways to prevent spreading of the disease.
