Joona Akhara announces end of its participation in Kumbh Mela

Dehradun: The Joona Akhara, one of the largest sects of seers in the country, announced the end of its participation in the Kumbh Mela on Saturday, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal that participation in the ongoing gathering in Haridwar be kept symbolic in view of the surge in coronavirus cases.

“The people of India and their survival is our first priority. In view of the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic, we have duly immersed all the deities invoked on the occasion of Kumbh. This is the formal immersion-conclusion of Kumbh on behalf of Joona Akhara,” Swami Avadheshanand Giri, the ‘mahamandaleshwar’ of the Joona Akhara, said in a tweet in Hindi.

An enclosed note signed by Giri, Joona Akhara patron Hari Giri and secretaries Mahant Mohan Bharti and Mahant Mahesh Puri said the decision to immerse the Kumbh deities had been taken in public interest after consultations with seers of the Akhara.

”Immersing the deities, we also pray to all ‘teertha’ and ‘siddhapeeth’ and declare the immersion of Haridwar Kumbh Mela, 2021,” it said.