Chhath Puja celebrations in Mumbai concluded on Wednesday morning with lakhs of devotees thronging the Juhu beach to pay obeisance to the rising sun.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and city BJP chief Ashish Shelar attended the festival at the Juhu beach on Tuesday evening.
Fadnavis, who was invited by the organisers of Chhath Utsav Mahasangh, performed puja and offered prayers to the sun.
Chhath is a major festival in eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, although it is celebrated in other parts of the country as well where Purvnanchalis are settled in significant numbers. Chhath Puja relives the age-old tradition of paying obeisance to the Sun God.
Addressing the devotees on the occasion, the chief minister said his government wanted to turn the Juhu beach into a Chhath Puja celebration point.
"We want to develop Juhu as a centre of Chhath Puja celebration so that devotees from across the country come here and celebrate it," Fadnavis said.
He assured that the government would continue to provide support in organising this festival.
Meanwhile, city Congress chief Sanjay Nirupam also performed puja at the Juhu beach.
Apart from Juhu beach, similar events were also organised at various places in the city, including Colaba, Powai, Borivali, Mulund and Chembur. In neighbouring Thane district, celebrations were held in Thane city, Dombivili, Kalyan and Bhiwandi.
Convener of Chhath Utsav Mahasangh, Amarjeet Mishra, who had last week led a delegation and met Fadnavis with a request to provide facilities like tents, potable water, mobile toilets for Chhath celebrations, thanked the government for its support.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
