Health desk in Manakamana Temple premises

Gorkha : The local level here has begun running a health desk in Manakamana Temple premises in view of the risks of COVID-19.

The shrine is recently reopened following a nearly four-month long prohibitory order enforced to tame the spread of coronavirus. According to chief of health section at Shahid Lakhan Rural Municipality, Birendra Shrestha, the famous religious shrine is reopened for the devotees since September 8. Shrestha shared that they were daily taking the health checkup of the priests, security personnel and staffers at the temple. “Since the temple priests and security personnel get in touch with devotees arriving at this shrine, all of them are at risk of the contagion. Hence, we have been regularly conducting health check of the priests, security personnel and temple staffers.”

Similarly, health checkup would be conducted on any devotees facing health hazards or medical emergencies arriving the temple besides providing medical intervention for health hazards, informed Shrestha. Furthermore, the devotees arriving at the temple without facial masks are provided with the mask to minimize the risk of flu-like infection. There is at least a health worker in the health desk and he/she treats separately the devotees with symptoms of fever, flu and the like. The temple was closed since May 6. The Temple Management Committee said that the devotees would hand over the paraphernalia of puja to the priest through the outer window of the temple. Those coming to offer animal sacrifice are allowed to perform animal sacrifice ritual in a separate place, said Insan Thapa, the Chief Priest of the temple.