Bhubaneswar, April 13: The city today sizzled at 42.2°C, but that failed to deter the spirit of revellers, who ushered in the Odia New Year or Maha Vishuba Sankranti in style and also celebrated the foundation day of the capital city.
From parades to exhibitions and special prayers as well as community get-together, the day turned out to be a joyful occasion for Bhubaneswar despite the challenging heat.
The prominent buildings along the Sachivalaya Marg decked up for the occasion from last evening. Early in the morning, 54 different teams conducted march past along PMG Square in front of the Assembly to celebrate the 68th foundation day of the capital city of Bhubaneswar.
Students of various government schools such as Unit-VI Girls' High School, Unit-VIII Boys' School, Kendriya Vidyalaya and so on as well as private schools such as DPS Kalinga, St Xavier's High Schools, St Joseph's High School and many more took part in the parade.
A horse-riding unit from the Jhoom Sports Club also walked in the parade, while skaters from the Odisha Skating Academy displayed stunts. BJB College students had also taken part in the event.
The CRPF music band entertained the audience. Also, 13 achievers were presented with the Rajdhani Gourab Samman for their contribution in various fields.
"It is a proud moment for us to see our city completing 68 years as the capital. The ceremony was fitting to celebrate the occasion," said Pranab Rout, a viewer.
Later in the day, a photo exhibition of rare pictures of the city and major events from the past was hosted at Jayadev Bhavan where a special function was also hosted in the evening. A musical evening was also organised at the entrance to the IG Park. The celebrations for the occasion will continue till Friday.
Braving the heat, residents today celebrated Maha Vishuba Sankranti, popularly known as Pana Sankranti. There was rush at all temples, especially the Hanuman shrines since it was Lord Hanuman's birthday.
In Cuttack and Bhubaneswar, temples organised free lunch, while devotees offered the deities traditional beverage called pana, a drink made of mango pulp or stone apple. Many collected a copy of the new Odia almanac or panji for the year that was released today.
Huge footfalls were registered at Puri Jagannath temple where the Lord was also offered the drink. In Puri, the traditional gyms or Jaga Akhadas also celebrated the occasion by hosting competitions for the wrestlers and other traditional stunt performers, which is known as maati kushti.
In Ganjam, the Danda Nacha rituals, wherein devotees please female deities by walking on fire and performing such stunts, concluded today with massive processions.
Similarly, the Jhamu yatra, another procession of devotees walking on burning coals was also observed across the state, including Bhubaneswar and Cuttack.
"This is the season of invoking female goddesses. Those, who have their wishes fulfilled, often take vows to perform these stunts," said Prafulla Satapathy, a priest.
Bhubaneswar-based organisations such as Chinta O Chetana hosted cultural festivals to celebrate the day. The Sikh community, too, observed Baisakhi with a community get-together at the Gurudwara on Janpath.
"It is a very important day for us since it is a harvest festival. Every year, we host langar or lunch for Gurudwara visitors to celebrate the occasion," said city resident Ekta Arora.
