Bengal govt likely to cancel rally to mark Netaji's birthday on 23 Jan, curtail R-Day celebrations due to COVID surge

Kolkata: The West Bengal government is likely to cancel a rally to mark legendary freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose’s birth anniversary on 23 January, 2022, as well as curtail the Republic Day programme on Red Road, owing to the surge in COVID-19 cases, a state secretariat source said on Saturday.

Discussions regarding the possible measures were held during a meeting of senior officials, including Chief secretary H K Dwivedi and Home Secretary B P Gopalika late on 14 January, 2022, he said.

The situation is not favourable for celebrating Netaji’s birthday and Republic Day in a grand manner, as COVID infections are on the rise again and large gatherings cannot be allowed.

The rally on 23 January, 2022, that was scheduled to be held from Red Road to Shyambazar is likely to be cancelled. The Republic Day programme could also be limited to only 30 minutes, the source said.

The final call, however, will be taken by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on 17 January, 2022.

West Bengal had on 14 January, 2022, reported 22,645 fresh COVID-19 cases, pushing the tally to 18,63,697. The death toll climbed to 20,013 after 28 more fatalities were reported.

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