Ludhiana: Chhath Puja concludes with devotees offering ‘Usha Arghya’

The four-day long festival of Chhath Puja concluded on Thursday with devotees in large numbers offering “Usha Arghya” (prayers to the rising sun) at over two dozen locations in the district.

Thousands of devotees, mainly comprising the migrant population, gathered at different points of Sidhwan Canal at around 4am and performed rituals for around three hours while standing inside the water body. Similar celebrations were also witnessed at Lalton, Jodhan, banks of the Sutlej rives and Doraha among other places.

As per the representatives of Navyuvak Sewa Society, who had organised an event at Pakhowal Road canal bridge, around 5 lakh people participated in the celebrations across the industrial hub. The participants mainly comprised migrants from states like Bihar, UP, and Nepal.

President of the society, Deepak Kanojia, said that people fast for a specific period everyday during the four-day festival and it ends with “Usha Arghya” which is performed on the last day.

Canal wears a filthy look

With the culmination of festivities, Sidhwan canal wore a filthy look with earthen clay pots, lamps and other material dumped in the water body. Though the organisers of the events stated that special cleanliness drives were organised in the area after the participants offered the prayers, heaps of garbage could be seen in the canal and waste was also seen dumped in the surrounding areas.

Kanojia said that a cleanliness drive was organised in the area and nothing concrete was dumped in the canal. Milk, water or fruits might have gone into the canal, but no waste was dumped.

MC health officer Vipal Malhotra was not available for comments.