Hyderabad: Over 40,000 people living in the city with roots in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand will begin their annual Chhath Puja from Saturday. The festival, which venerates the sun god, will be held near various water bodies, with Hussainsagar being the largest one of them all.
“This festival is taken up to revere the sun and perform pujas. On this day, women perform the puja by standing in a water body — with the water coming up to their waists — and offer water to the sun,” said Parmanand Sharma, chairman of the Chhath Pooja Committee.
Explaining the celebrations, he said: “We wear new clothes and fast for about 8-12 hours. Then we offer a prayer to the sun god and eat sweets like kheer. On Saturday, we have sandhya argh, an evening offering to the sun. For most part of the day, we rest and begin making sweetmeats at home. In the evening, we gather at the banks of a river, pond or a reservoir to perform the puja.”
Municipal administration principal secretary, Aravind Kumar, visited the ghat near Sanjeevaiah Park to inspect the preparations for the festival.
In a bid to ensure smooth function, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has made extensive arrangements at several ponds in the city.
“This festival is of utmost importance to the people of the east, especially for those from Bihar. It also celebrated in a grand manner by people from Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh,” said an official of the civic body.
To make sure that there are no shortcomings during the veneration, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation officials have undertaken a programme of lighting and sanitation at as many as 15 ponds within its limits.
“The water bodies have been cleaned up and the roads leading to the ponds are being repaired to avoid any trouble for the festival,” said GHMC commissioner, D.S. Lokesh Kumar.
On the day of the festival, there will also be medical officers and sanitation staff to oversee the arrangements and ensure there is no drop in the quality of services.
On Saturday, there would be a sandhya argh and the devotees would gather at the banks of a river or lake to perform pooja. On Sunday, there would be a usha argh, where an offering is made to the sun god in the morning.
On this day, devotees gather, offer water to the sun god and sing hymns and praises in his name.
