The four-day Chhath festival concluded in India on Monday morning after the offering of ‘Usha Arghya’. A sea of humanity thronged various water bodies across the state to pay obeisance to the rising sun.
In Jharkhand, amid playing of devotional songs and bursting of firecrackers, devotees marched towards rivers, rivulets, lakes and ponds where they performed the rituals.
Apart from common people, politicians also congregated at different water bodies to offer ‘Arghya’ to the Sun God.
“Chhath Puja is the worship of nature god. It is a great example of dedication, faith and cleanliness. I bow my head to this great tradition.
I pray to Chhathi Maiya to bless everyone with happiness and good health,” Chief Minister Hemant Soren said.
This year, water level in various water bodies was higher as compared to previous years. The administrations of different districts had made elaborate safety arrangements for devotees such as erecting barricades at vulnerable ponds and rivers and marking danger zones.
The Ranchi district administration had deployed teams of NDRF at Kanke Dam, Bada Talab, Button Talab and Dhuwa Dam to deal with any crisis situation.
An official in the Ranchi administration said that the festival passed off peacefully in the state capital with no untoward incident being reported.
Many devotees also performed the rituals in makeshift ponds on rooftops due to factors such as long distance to the water bodies, pollution and age.
(NT photo)
In Delhi thousands of devotees thronged ghats and makeshift ponds in Delhi to worship the Sun God on the final day of the festival.
After two years of Covid-induced restrictions, Chhath Puja saw a lot of enthusiasm among the devotees, more so among people from Purvanchal where the festival takes its root.
Chhath puja is celebrated on the sixth day after Diwali and is also known as Surya Sashthi as it is dedicated to the Sun God. It is one of the most popular festivals in eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.
The Delhi government made 1,100 ghats for Chhath Puja across the city this year and a budget of Rs 25 crore was earmarked for the preparations for the festival.
In Kolkata, thousands of devotees offered puja to the Sun God at ghats along the Hooghly river and in temporary ghats along waterbodies in Kolkata on Sunday on the occasion of the Chhath festival.
A Kolkata Municipal Corporation official said devotees offered puja on riverbanks at seven ghats along the Hooghly before sunset.
Across the city, devotees offered puja in 50 waterbodies where temporary ghats were built by the KMC. Several groups of devotees arrived at the ghats to the accompaniment of loud music.
(NT photo)
In Patna, after two years of restrictions due to Covid-19, devotional fervour gushed forth across Bihar on Sunday when millions of people offered salutations to the setting sun on the auspicious occasion of “Chhath”, the state’s most popular festival.
“Chhath vratees” – those taking part in elaborate rituals without taking a sip of water for 36 hours – stood in waist-deep waters at ghats along rivers, ponds, and even make-shift water bodies on rooftops for “arghya” (offering) to the “astachal gami Surya”.
All streets seemed to be leading to the Ganges in the state capital where social segregations gave way, even if temporarily, in the face of an all-encompassing devotion towards “Chhathi Maiya”, who is believed to fulfil wishes.
