Cities Across India Witness First Solar Eclipse of 2020

The annular solar eclipse began at 9:15 am in India and is scheduled to reach its peak at 12:10 pm.

Parts of India including Jammu, Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Gandhinagar on Sunday, 21 June, were among those who were able to witness the first solar eclipse of 2020.

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/MeMeghnad)

Parts of India including Jammu, Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Gandhinagar on Sunday, 21 June, were among those who were able to witness the first solar eclipse of 2020, which coincides with the summer solstice.

The annular solar eclipse began at 9:15 am and is scheduled to reach its peak at 12:10 pm. The eclipse is scheduled to end by 3:04 pm in India.

The full Ring of Fire view will be visible across north India especially in north Rajasthan, Kurukshetra in Haryana, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, Financial Express reported.

The next solar eclipse will be visible on 14-15 December in India.

Temples Across India to Remain Closed

Several temples across India have either decided to remain shut or curtail operations in light of the eclipse. Portals of temples in Bhopal will remain closed on Sunday, and temples in Lucknow will remain closed till 4 pm, ANI reported.

According to The Times of India, the Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirumala, Andhra Pradesh will also be closed for pilgrim worship on Sunday due to the eclipse. The temple doors will open at 2:30 pm on Sunday after the eclipse period is over, but devotees will not be allowed in.

Financial Express reported that the Badrinath-Kedarnath Char Dham Temples in India, Ganga Temples in Haridwar and Krishna Temples in Vrindavan will also be closed on Sunday.

This is supposed to be an annular solar eclipse, where the Sun, Moon and the Earth are aligned in a straight line and will also be visible from Asia, Africa, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean, parts of Europe and Australia.

(With inputs from ANI, The Times of India and Financial Express.)