The South Delhi Municipal Corporation on Monday asked the Meat shops in Delhi to be shut during the "auspicious period of Navratri devoted to Goddess Durga", adding that devotees during these nine days abstain from use of non-vegetarian food, alcohol and also certain spices.

"During Navratri days, people visit temple to pay their respect to the Goddess and to seek blessings for themselves and their families. In these days people forgo even use of onion and garllic in their diet and the sight of meat being sold in open or near temples makes them uncomfortable," Mayor Mukkesh Suryaan said in his letter, NDTV.com reported

The Mayor said the "religious beliefs and sentiments" of devotees are also affected when they come across meat shops on their daily visits to the temple. They also have to contend with the "foul smell", he said.

"Moreover, some meat shops dump waste in gutters or beside the road, which the stray dogs feed on. It is not only unhygienic but also an appaling sight for passerby. Such events can be restricted if the meat shops are closed down during the period of Navratri festival...the closing of meat shops near temples is also necessary to maintain the cleanliness in and around temples," he said.

The Navratri festival, which began on April 2, ends nine days later on 11.