New Delhi: Chhath Puja, the great festival of folk faith celebrated with immense devotion, started with Nahay-Khay today. Chhath Puja, is a deeply spiritual festival that is primarily celebrated in Bihar, Jharkhand, and parts of Uttar Pradesh, as well as in Nepal's Mithila region.


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The festival, which honours Surya (the Sun God) and Chhathi Maiya (His sister), is observed over four days and includes a series of elaborate rituals that symbolise purification, gratitude, and dedication.


The entire family also participates in these customs, reinforcing familial bonds and unity. The Chhath Puja travel rush over the years have seen packed stations, overloaded passengers on trains amidst a massive rush of people looking to reach their hometown to honour Chhathi Maiya, who is revered as the sister of the Sun God.


While, on one hand unprecedented rush of passengers has made train journey extremely difficult, going home by flight during Chhath is proving to be an exorbitantly expensive affair. 


We checked one-way online fares from Delhi-Patna, and Delhi-Dubai for November 5. As of the time of writing this article, a one-way flight from Delhi to Patna costs anywhere between Rs 16.3K to Rs 21.4K. Whereas, the flight fare from Delhi to Dubai, on a one way route, is 19.8K for the cheapest seat.


Western Railways has said shared on social media platform X that this year Indian Railways has transported approximately 54 lakh passengers to their destinations during the current festive season. For the convenience of passengers and in view of passenger demand in this festive season, Western Railways will run 15 festive special trains even today.


Each day of Chhath Puja emphasises discipline, purity, and gratitude, reinforcing the festival's themes of devotion to nature and the divine. The four-day celebration connects families, communities, and generations through shared customs and deep reverence for the Sun God and his sister Chhathi Maiya.


With IANS Inputs