Agrarian festival Nuakhai celebrated in Odisha, CM extends wishes

Bhubaneswar: Nuakhai, the agrarian festival of Western Odisha was celebrated with pomp and grandeur on Saturday. As per rituals, the newly harvested crop also known as Nabanna was offered to goddess Samaleswari, the presiding deity of Sambalpur between 9:05 am and 9:15 am today.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik extended wishes to the people of the State on the occasion by tweeting in Sambalpuri.

Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also greeted people and prayed for peace and prosperity. International sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik through his sand sculpture has wished people.

Devotees in large numbers thronged the Samaleswari temple to witness the 'Nabanna Lagi' ceremony and seek blessings of the goddess.

“We are happy that the rituals were completed at the temple as per the schedule. We had a darshan of the deity without any hassle as adequate measures were undertaken by the administration for the smooth conduct of the rituals here,” said a devotee.

Nuakhai is one of the major festivals in Odisha and on this particular day the head of the family worships the presiding deity and offers new rice and other food items. The prasad is then distributed among the family members who then consume the new food grain together.

As the festival also symbolizes harmony, various socio-cultural organisations have lined up Nuakhai Bhetghat programmes in various places to celebrate the occasion in the evening today. A number of cultural programmes including Sambalpuri folk dances and songs will also be organised in several parts of Odisha.

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