Delhi’s Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah is finally reopening today. The Dargah is opening after five months with several precautionary measures as a part of the government’s Unlock 4 guidelines. Amid coronavirus concerns, there will be no touching of the graves of Hazarat Nizamuddin Aulia and Amir Khusro, idling in the dargah courtyard or soaking in the magic of Qawwali nights.
The caretakers of the Dargah will ensure that the norms like wearing masks, using sanitisers and social distancing are strictly followed.
Delhi: Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia Dargah reopens for devotees today.
The shrine was closed from mid-March, after the outbreak of #Coronavirus. pic.twitter.com/mwX5E2utzW
— ANI (@ANI) September 6, 2020
To ensure social distancing among the devotees, markings have been made on the floor while separate entry and exit points have been fixed too in the dargah.
Nazim Nizami, one of the caretakers of the shrine, told PTI, “We have also covered the graves of Hazarat Nizamuddin Aulia and Amir Khusro (in the dargah complex) with plastic sheets so that people do not touch them while paying obeisance, as it could lead to people getting infected with the virus. We will also deploy men at the gates of the dargah to ensure that people enter wearing face covers.”
Though religious places in Delhi started opening under the Unlock process after June 8, the alarming increase in COVID-19 cases kept the dargah closed. As it reopens from today, a major nostalgia of Qawwali evenings will surely be in the air.
Nizami shared, “In view of the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Qawwali evenings which are hugely famous among followers of the Sufi saint will not be held for the time being. We will ensure that people do not sit in the courtyard of the dargah as they used to do before, and leave after paying obeisance.”
