Breaking their annual tradition, Kolkata’s football giants Mohun Bagan on Sunday stated that they were forced not to celebrate the customary “Bar Puja” in 2020 owing to the coronavirus pandemic.
It is worth highlighting that the Kolkata Maidan celebrates the traditional “Bar Puja” on the first day of the Bengali New Year which falls on 14 April this year. As part of the rituals, the club worships bar posts on either end of the ground which officially marks the starting of a new football season.
“It’s very unfortunate that we need to call off the customary ritual that we follow on Bengali New Year’s Day every year. But in present condition safety of our fans, colleagues is our topmost priority and keeping that in mind, we had to take this hard decision. We sincerely hope that tough time will be over,” the club’s General Secretary Srinjoy Bose said in a statement as quoted by IANS.
Latest records state that the virus has infected more than 16,00,000 people globally while it has also claimed over 1,00, 000 lives worldwide. In India, there are more than 8,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 while over 250 have lost their lives.