The administration here on Saturday held interactive sessions with religious heads and urged them to sensitize people about need to follow precautions to prevent spread of COVID19.
The sessions were held in tehsils Khanyar and north Srinagar which witnessed considerable participation. Religious heads of all places of worship belonging to all different faiths attended the sessions and took part in interactions and deliberations.
In Khanyar, Deputy Commissioner (DC) Srinagar, Shahid Choudhary chaired the interactive session in which besides religious heads of places of worship from across the tehsil, civil society members and other citizens were also present as participants.
The DC said that COVID19 was now a part of life at least till a vaccine becomes available and since lockdown and restrictions cannot be enforced forever.
He urged all religious and other heads to assist the administration in efforts to sensitise the masses about the dangers of taking the coronavirus for granted and the critical need to follow all precautions and guidelines to prevent its spread and contraction.
Referring to religious heads of mosques, gurudwaras, temples and churches who were present on the occasion The DC said people listen to them and believe in their words and messages and urged them to use their influence in spreading awareness and encouraging a culture of preventions.
Experts from Department of Preventive Medicine dwelled on precautions to be adopted by public including mandatory use of mask, social distancing, hygiene and observing SOPs.
Tehsildar north and other senior officers organised the interactive session at Hazratbal. Significant participation of religious and other heads as well as members of civil societies were witnessed in each tehsil.
During these sessions the importance of social distancing, using of face masks, washing of hands with soap, avoiding crowd and social gatherings among other guidelines were emphasized. The participants were urged to propagate these messages and help the administration in its efforts to contain spread of COVID19 disease.
In each of these interactive sessions held across the district, suggestions and feedback were also sought from participants and representatives and heads of mohallas. These suggestions and feedback were noted for incorporation in guidelines and improvements in services and efforts put in place on the ground.
The administration shared its future plans and strategies with participants in each interactive session and urged all citizens to support it in its sincere efforts.
The participants in all these interactive sessions assured the administration of their full support and assistance to reach out to masses and spread the message of precautions and guidelines.
The district wise initiative to elicit greater involvement of clerics and heads of religious institutions for public awareness on precautions will cover more than 2,000 mosques, madarsas, temples, Gurudwara, church and all places of worship. Printed material about precautions and awareness is also being distributed.