Most of the churches in the State have opened their doors for the faithful by holding the Sunday masses. Proper SOPs are being followed like wearing of the mask, maintaining social distancing while sitting on the benches and sanitizing the hands as they enter the church.
However a few more steps seem necessary in order to assure safety of the parishioners. It is observed that various speakers including the priests and those parishioners, who do the day’s Bible readings, use the same set of mikes. It is a well-known fact that the coronavirus is spread through droplets.
If the person who speaks through the mike happens to be Covid positive then the virus can get deposited on the mike which can infect the next speakers. It seems necessary to sanitize the mike with a sanitizing spray after each speaker has finished speaking.
Churches could be maintaining social distancing by allowing the occupancy of alternate benches. It would be desirable to allow the faithful in the subsequent mass occupy the benches which were not occupied during the previous mass.
The church needs to have proper cross ventilation with all the doors and windows being kept open during the mass. Though the number of infections have reduced, the number of deaths due to the virus is a cause of worry.
