Churches in Mizoram reopen after more than 10 months

AIZAWL: Churches in Mizoram finally reopened on Sunday -- after over 10 months of closure due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

 

The government has allowed churches to reopen every Saturday and Sunday with only 50% seating capacity and permitted church services only during the daytime.

 

While the Seventh-day Adventist churches were reopened on Saturday, the churches belonging to Baptist, Presbyterian, and other denominations were reopened on Sunday.

The decision to reopen the places of worship in the Christian majority state was made, following a dip in COVID-19 cases in the Northeast Indian state.

 

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Noteworthy is that religious institutions have been shut down since March 22 of last year due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

 

Lalsiamkunga, a church elder said that the re-opening of the churches has brought joy to the Christians at the same time the COVID-19 epidemic has reminded us how important it is to stay connected to the church.

 

The COVID-19 curve of the state showed a downward trend, with the rate of infection dropping to 2.04 percent.

 

State's COVID-19 tally increased to 4,382 on Sunday as one more person tested positive for the infection. Health officials said that contact tracing is going on.

 

There are currently 23 active cases in the state, while 4,350 people have recovered from the infection and 9 patients have so far succumbed to infection.