Village fairs banned, government’s permission is a must to book wedding halls

Wedding hall Bangalore

Bengaluru: After a day the government issued an order on restricting the number of people at indoor and outdoor weddings to 100 and 200 respectively, it announced more rules for such gatherings to prevent the further spread of Covid-19.

It has now become mandatory to get the district administration’s permission to book marriage halls. Also, organisers must issue passes to guests attending functions.

However, these conditions are not applicable for those who have booked the halls before April 17. The government has also decided to ban village fairs and religious functions till further notice.

The measures were finalised after revenue minister R Ashoka, home minister Basavaraj Bommai and health minister K Sudhakar held a videoconference with deputy commissioners and other officials to review the current Covid-19 situation.

Ashoka said, “The number of passes should be in line with the cap on attendance. For example, 100 people are allowed to attend a wedding in a hall. Only 100 passes should be issued. If more passes are issued, cases will be booked against the organisers and hall owners, and the venue will be shut.” Guest passes are mandatory for outdoor events too.

The ministers have advised officials to ensure that these guidelines are implemented effectively across the state, including villages. Tahsildars, panchayat development officers and village accountants can register cases under the Disaster Management Act.

It has been reported that some district deputy commissioners have suggested implementing a night curfew from 8 pm to 6 am as against the existing hours of 10 pm to 5 am. Some wanted night curfew in all districts. Presently, the curfew is in eight districts. A decision regarding this will be taken after a discussion with chief minister BS Yediyurappa.

The government is likely to announce more curbs in the movement of people as Bengaluru is witnessing more than 10,000 Covid-19 cases since the last three days. Ashoka has called a meeting of Bengaluru MLAs and MPs on Monday to take their feedback.