After the Tirumala Tirupati temple, the Simchalam temple in Andhra Pradesh also announced on Thursday that it is shutting down for devotees in view of COVID-19 scare.
With the state government advising major places of worship to ensure that there are no congregations, the Sri Varha Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Devasthanam Simhachalam in Visakhapatnam district announced that pilgrims will not be allowed for 'darshan' from March 20 until further orders.
The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of the Trust Board under the chairmanship of Sanchaita Gajapati Raju.
"This was to ensure safety of the pilgrims and the community at large," the board said in a statement.
It said that the decision was taken as per the guidelines and instructions by the Union Health Ministry and the state government.
However, the daily kainkaryas, daily rituals and regulars sevas will continue, the board said, that all necessary precautions and health guidelines are being put in place for archakas and temples employees.
The Andhra Pradesh government in Amaravati on Thursday decided to shut all places of mass gathering, like major places of worship, cinema halls, shopping malls, gyms, amusement parks and museums, to contain the spread of coronavirus. On Wednesday, it had announced closure of all educational institutions.
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy after a high-level meeting urged people not to panic and take precautionary measures.
After the meeting, Minister for Health Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas (Nani) said no meetings, rallies and protests would be permitted in the state. People have been urged to postpones marriages, and if that was not possible limit the number of guests.
"Bars and restaurants have been asked to maintain a distance of one metre between each table, and public transport officials been asked to avoid overloading and control standing passengers in buses," he said.
The Minister said the government had taken all required steps and keeping strict vigil on people returning from abroad. Foreign returnees been asked to stay isolated in their homes. Violaters of rules would face action, he added.
IANS inputs