Four day long Chhath Festival concludes in Jharkhand

Ranchi (By our correspondent): The four day long Chhath Mahaparv dedicated to the worship of Sun God concluded in the
state on Wednesday after devotees offered arghya to the rising sun at the various Chhath Ghats spread across the length and breadth
of Jharkhand. A sea of devotees since the wee hours of the day started gathering at the banks of their nearby river bodies and after
the sun came out in the sky the devotees along with their family members and friends offered arghya to the god making this four
day long festival comes to an end.

Jharkhand Governor Draupadi Murmu celebrated the festival in Ranchi as she reached the Hatania pond to offer arghya to the devotes while Chief Minister Raghubar Das celebrated the festival with his family in Jamshedpur. After offering arghya to the sun god Mr Das prayed to the well being and prosperity of the people of the entire state and the nation and hoped that all wishes of the devotees may come true. 

The festival had commenced on Sunday with ‘nahaykhay’ during which people took bath at their nearby river bodies and prepared lunch consisting of rice, dal mixed with pumpkin in pure ghee. On Monday ‘kharna’ was performed where devotes prepared ‘kheer’ which was offered to the god and distributed among friends, family members and acquaintances. Tuesday evening the people reached to the nearby ghats where they will offer ‘arghya’ to the setting sun and on Wednesday the festival came to an end after again arghya being offered to the rising sun.

In wake of the festival elaborate security arrangements were made in the state and also in the state capital where not only the traffic was diverted and barricading erected to ensure hassle-free movement of the devotees on the other hand policemen were also deployed at the banks of the rivers while team of NDRF with motor boats was posted in all major dams of the state capital including Kanke and Dhurwa along with Bada Talaab and Hatania Pond