THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, INDIA – MARCH 9: Women seen wearing facemasks amid rising Coronavirus scare, as they offer Pongala -- a gruel made of rice, jaggery, ghee and coconut during Attukal Pongala, on March 9, 2020 in Thiruvananthapuram, India. Lakhs of women lined up the streets of Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram on Monday to perform the annual Attukal Pongala festival at Attukal Devi temple, amid renewed fear of coronavirus after six cases were reported from the state. Temple’s officials, however, said more than 2.6 million people participated in the festival. Many foreigners also take part in Kerala’s Attukal Pongala festival but this time they were advised to make the offering in their hotels in the wake of coronavirus cases being reported in the state. A team from Germany was sent back and advised to do the ritual at their hotel in Kovalam. (Photo by Vivek R Nair/Hindustan Times )
