The number of Holi revellers on Calcutta’s roads was fewer on Sunday compared with previous years, but almost all of those who stepped out were without masks.

Many of them said they did not wear a mask because they would have to take it off while playing Holi. Some others said it was safe to take off masks. They hung around very close, hugged and smeared each other with colour and stood in gatherings outside eateries —everything doctors had warned against.

Children play with colours at Sreebhumi in Lake Town

Officers of Calcutta police identified five places — Maniktala, Beleghata, Behala, Rajabazar and Garia — as the areas where most number of violations were spotted. Till Sunday noon, the police slapped fines of Rs 100 on 110 people for not wearing masks.

“The crowd was far less this year, but only a handful of those who came out wore masks,” said a police officer.

Celebrations on Sudder Street

Holi celebrations were muted across blocks of Salt Lake and New Town, but there too most of those who did step out to join revelry were without masks.

The state health department had on Friday issued an advisory asking people to celebrate Holi in a restricted manner this year. The advisory said people should consider celebrating Holi with their families and reiterated that the Covid-19 pandemic was still not over.

Youngsters smear abir on each other on Vivekananda Road

The advisory warned that since the virus has undergone mutations, the number of infections could rapidly rise any time. Some states in India are already reporting a very high number of cases, the advisory stated.

It also added that people should not go close to another person while smearing him or her with colour and advised them to stay away from crowded places.

Youngsters smear abir on each other on Camac Street

Several youths told Metro that wearing a mask would have been an impediment in the way of celebrating Holi, a reason why they didn’t wear it. “We have to take off the mask while smearing each other with colour. The masks will get dirty. Also, it is a lot of trouble taking off and putting on masks repeatedly,” said a youth, standing in a group near the Vivekananda Road-Bidhan Sarani crossing.

A group of young women near Tridhara Club in south Calcutta echoed a similar reason for not wearing masks.

Revellers click selfies near Golpark

A tour of the city on Sunday morning and afternoon showed that most people out on the streets did not bother to wear a mask.

Around 1.30pm on Sunday, Metro saw about 100 people had assembled outside a soft drink parlour at Golpark and a few neighbouring eateries. Almost no one had a mask on. People were chatting, shouting and celebrating.

Earlier, around 11.15am, about 10 kids were seen playing Holi on a road in Lake Town without masks. This newspaper came across similar scenes on Raja Dinendra Street, CR Avenue, Sudder Street and Camac Street, to name a few.

Youths smeared with colour were spotted in all parts of the city riding two-wheelers. Many two-wheelers had three persons and none of them was with a mask.

Revellers click selfies on Sudder Street

The number of Covid-19 cases has been on the rise in the state since late last month. The state on Sunday reported 827 new cases, 292 in Calcutta. On February 28, Bengal had reported 198 new cases and 62 of them were from Calcutta.

Public health experts had warned that the number of cases could see a sharp rise after Holi if people did not adhere to Covid-appropriate behaviour. “We behaved responsibly during Durga Puja and other festivals last year, which is why there was no sharp jump in cases after the festivals. Let us wait for a week or 10 days. We will get to understand if there is a jump after Holi or not,” said one public health expert.

A crowd outside a shop selling thandai at Golpark. Pictures by Pradip Sanyal

In Bidhannagar, norm violation was observed in CF, BF, DL, FD, BB, DB, BC and other blocks.

Samir Ganguly, a BC Block resident, who was out with his friends for a round of playing with colours, chose to leave the mask inside a car. So were his friends. “We had made plans to play colours and used only herbal abir. We kept the masks in the cars as we could not play while wearing them,” said Ganguly.

In New Town, too, most gated communities had arranged for a string of activities for the day. While some arranged for morning matches, others had organised community breakfast and lunch.