Thousands observe Guru Nanak Jayanti in city

Ranchi: The Sikhs here on Tuesday observed Guru Nanak Jayanti with much fervour after a two-year hiatus owing to the Covid-19.
At Guru Nanak School, devotees offered prayers and partook in ‘langar’ (community feast) to commemorate the 553rd birth anniversary of the founder of Sikhism and the first of the 10 Sikh Gurus.
Chief minister Hemant Soren participated in the Prakash Utsav programme on the P P Compound where Guru Granth Sahib, regarded by Sikhs as the sovereign and eternal Guru, was kept on a stage after it was brought to the venue in a palanquin in a procession.
The chief minister prayed for the happiness and prosperity of the people of the state. He also inaugurated a road connecting Guru Nanak School to Kadru Road.
Soren said: “The Sikh community has stood firmly to serve society during the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Around 35,000 from Patiala, Chandigarh and Amritsar arrived here to participate in the event. Gagandeep Singh Sethi, the president of the Gurudwara Guru Singh Sabha, said: “After a two-year hiatus, the festival is being observed with great fervour.”
Specific arrangements were put in place to control the crowd. Separate sections were made for men, women and senior citizens at ‘langar’. “We made these arrangements to control the crowd and serve the devotees properly. We knew the crowd will be large as the festival is being held after a two-year break.”
Meanwhile, Kartik Purnima, which began on Monday and concluded on Tuesday, was celebrated with devotees visiting various ghats to take a bath. Neha Sharma, a devotee from Bariatu, said: “It is believed that taking a holy deep in the Ganges on Kartik Purnima releases all of the life’s grief.”