Patna, May 6: Residents in the state capital used the auspicious day of Akshay Tritiya to wrap all their important and pending works.

As a result, most in demand were the priests, armed with their almanacs, which that proclaims this day is most auspicious for marriages and starting new ventures.

Krishnanan Pathak, a 65-year-old priest at Siddhapith Navjyoti Mandir, said: “On this day, the sun and moon are believed to be most radiant. It has the best positions, making one of the popular dates in the Hindu calendar for new ventures. Buying gold jewellery on this day is also considered very good. As it is believed that anything undertaken today never diminishes, marriages solemnised on this day are considered to be for ages, instead of only seven births.”

On his engagements for the day, Pathak said: “I am going to solemnise four marriages, instead of the usual two. I received several requests for today, as everybody wanted to solemnise their wedding on this particular day.”

Shiv Kumar Pandey, another priest, said: “Lagan is the mood of nature. It is very crucial in scheduling marriage dates, as it affects the marital life of a couple. People try to choose the most auspicious day and Akshay Tritiya always ensures good fortune.”

Vibha Sinha, a 38-year-old resident, said: “As the day of marriage decides the life of a couple, it is necessary to be particular about the date and lagan. So, in case of marriages, families try to choose the most auspicious date for good future of a couple.”

Community halls and hotels in the city are also booked for the day, courtesy Akshay Tritiya.

Banquet manager of Hotel Chanakya Rajesh Sahay said: “We are booked full today. We have three marriages, two engagements and one reception scheduled. People made the bookings three months back and we were flooded with requests. I didn’t realise it was Akshay Tritiya today. Now I understand the reason for so many bookings.”

Hotel Maurya is also booked for two marriages and an engagement. An employee said: “Lagan has become very popular with people. This was not the trend five years ago.”

Mrityunjay Kumar, the owner of Ma Kamla Utsav Hall that is booked for a marriage today, said: “Today, being Akshay Tritiya, is a very popular date for wedding. We have received around 50 requests for today.”