President, Vice President, PM visit Kamalpokhari to pay homage to Sun God

Kathmandu / November 17: President Bidya Devi Bhandari, Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli visited the local Kamalpokhari pond late evening Tuesday and paid homage to the setting sun on the occasion of the Chhath, the festival of Sun God.

Upon their arrival at the site, they were greeted by the locals and devotees. The pond was decorated and illuminated to observe the holy festival which is celebrated with the established rituals.

On the occasion, Prime Minister Oli has said the government was seriously working to end adverse situation surfaced in the country. The people of Madhes have been affected most due to the present crisis, he said, adding that he was sad over this. “I wish the talks between the government and the agitating parties would reach a logical conclusion.”

Underling the need of going ahead together to build the nation, the Prime Minister said the government was effortful to address the problems facing the people due to a severe fuel crisis in the country.

Meanwhile, President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Tuesday paid homage to Sun God at Guheshwori of the capital city on the occasion of the Chhath festival.

The President presented offerings, worshipped the statue of Chhati Mai at Gaurighat and lit oil lamps. It was followed by other devotees by lighting the lamps as per the ritual in the area. The devotees thronged to pay homage to the statue on the premises of Gaurighat.

The President also inspected the river bank decorated colourfully for the ritual. She was greeted by the locals of the area with flower bouquet while young priests recited verses from the scriptures.

On the occasion of the festival, the Chhath Puja Committee cleaned the banks of the Bagmati River, Gaurighat and Guheswori area and decorated it with colourful lights.

The devotees started the homage ritual by worshipping the setting sun in the evening with fruits and sweets. The Chhath festival is celebrated from Chaturthi to Saptami in the month of Kartik as per the Nepali calendar.

The women folks usually observe a strict fasting during the festival with the belief their aspirations will be fulfilled. The Chhath festival celebrated in the Mithila culture in Tarai started to spread to Kathmandu and other hilly regions after 1989. RSS