Ranchi: On the second day of the four-day-long festival of Chhath Mahaparv on Saturday the ritual of ‘Kharna’ was performed.
As part of the ritual, ‘parvaitin’ (the main worshiper who keeps fast) cooked kheer in milk and ‘gur’ (jaggery) with Roti/Poori, other seasonal fruits and dry fruits and offered it to the deity as naivedya (bhog) in the evening. Later, the prasad was distributed among family and friends and neighbours.
After the ritual of Kharna the person who performs the Chhath Mahaparv goes on 36 hour fast during which they also do not drink water. On Sunday devotees will throng to their nearby water bodies and offer Argya to the ‘Asthachalgami Surya’ (setting sun).
Meanwhile, in the state, the Ranchi Municipal Corporation is taking all possible steps to ensure that devotees do not face any trouble at the Chhath Ghats with Mayor Asha Lakra herself visiting each and every ghat and monitoring the preparations.
The RMC has pressed in additional people who are doing the cleaning jobs in the ponds and surrounding areas in two shifts while barricading has been also done in water where water is at a dangerous level so that people do not go that side.
The RMC has set up temporary changing rooms at Chhath Ghats so that people do not have problems changing their clothes while arrangements for lights have been done to prevent any trouble due to darkness. On the other hand, Chief Minister Hemant Soren has once again extended his best wishes to the people on the occasion of Kharna.