DV SUBBA REDDY

(EDITOR-IN-CHIEF)

Hyderabad: The people of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu states are celebrating the festival of “Makara Sankranthi” with a great joy and happiness. This festival is called as a “Farmers Festival”.

Farmers celebrate this festival as a sign of the Paddy, Jowar and other crops harvesting. The new crop of food grains reaches the farmers house in the month of January every year. This festival celebrates three days with traditional programs as per mythology. This festival is mainly based on nature, that to performing poojas to the God Sun, who is the direct visible to the people. This festival is a sign of celestial journey of the God Sun from Libra to Capricorn.

As per the Hindu Mythology the Uttarayanam days will start this day, with a period of six months. The people celebrate Sankranthi festival for three days. First day is called “Bhogi”. The people set fire with old waste material on the day, the people also pours Indian Jujube’s with flowers on kids heads and give blessings to them. The second day is called “Makara Sankranthi”. The third day is called “Kanuma” a cattle festival.

Farmers will perform poojas to the cattle, bulls, cows which cooperates them in the Agriculture throughout the year. They will decorate the cattle and gave delicious food to the cattle.

The people will celebrate Sankranthi festival with Rangoli, cock fights, bull fights (Jelli Kattu) in Tamil Nadu and Chittoor district in A.P. The farmers of Andhra Pradesh will conduct stone dragging competitions to the bulls and in some areas conduct competitions for sheep’s also.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy participated in Sankranthi celebrations at Gudivada in Krishna district on the day of “Bhogi”. The Civil Supplies Minister Kodali Nani organized Sankranthi celebrations at Gudivada Convention Centre under the Charitable Trust of Y.S.R to N.T.R. The AP Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan poured Indian Jujube’s with flowers on the heads of kids at convention centre and conveyed his blessings to them. Later he visited the women’s toys gallery (Bommala Koluvu) at the convention centre. Later he inaugurated the national stone dragging competitions for bulls at Gudivada Convention Centre.