IT is indeed heartening to see President Arif Alvi holding a video-link meeting with leaders of the clergy representing various schools of thought from all provinces and requesting them to adhere to the already agreed SOPs for collective prayers.

We sincerely hope that the clergy will convey the message to prayer-leaders and committee members of all mosques to ensure that SOPs were strictly implemented and those regularly going for prayers remained safe during the second wave of Covid-19.

While going for prayers, a number of mosques in Karachi’s DHA area are not following SOPs at all. I am not sure what the situation in other areas is. Worshippers come to the mosques without a mask, and there are no instructions from the prayer-leaders for distancing.

I would urge DHA Karachi’s vigilance team to visit the mosques and speak to the relevant persons so that they make others follow the government’s instructions regarding Covid-19-related SOPs.

Akber D.Vazir

Karachi

Published in Dawn, December 15th, 2020