New Delhi: Thousands of devotees have gathered at Delhi Ghats for Chhath Puja celebrations after a gap of two years due to Covid-related restrictions. The occasion is to worship the Sun God.
Devotional songs and folk songs were offered to the Sun and devotees were standing in knee-deep water or makeshift ponds to pray. Also known as Surya Shashthi, it is celebrated on the sixth day after Diwali. The Sun God is worshipped on Sunday evening and Monday morning. This is the first large-scale Puja since the pandemic started.
The Delhi government has set up 1,100 ghats of Chhath Puja across the city. The budget has been increased from Rs 2.5 crore in 2014 to nearly Rs 25 crore this year.
"I have been doing Chhath for the last 20 years. Day by day, its popularity is increasing and more people are celebrating it. The arrangements are good but it needs to be improved. After two years of Covid, we have come here to a ghat. Hope Chhath Maiya will bless everyone and fulfil everyone's wishes," said devotee Sushma Singh to PTI.
"We are here for Chhath Puja. The government has made good arrangements but we have been asked not to enter the Yamuna and instead perform the rituals in ghats made near the river," said another devotee Raghunath Kant.
"For the last two years, there were no public celebrations because of the coronavirus pandemic but this year, all have gathered to celebrate Chhath together. This is a special feeling. The government has also made good arrangements for the festival," said a resident and devotee Ramesh Jha.