Thousands attend Mela Kheer Bhawani associated with Goddess Ragnya Devi in Kashmir

Kheer-Bhawani, June 20: Thousands of devotees from different parts of the country joined the night-long "Puja" on the occasion of Mela Kheer Bhawani, the most important festival of Kashmiri pandits, associated with the Hindu Goddess, Ragnya Devi in the Central Kashmir district of Ganderbal.



The annual festival is held here on Jesht Ashtami (May-June) when Kashmiri Pandits offer prayers to seek the blessings of the diety.


Meanwhile, Governor N N Vohra has felicitated the people on the occasion and observed that this festival is a shining example of communal harmony and brotherhood, which have been the hallmarks of the glorious pluralistic ethos of Jammu and Kashmir in the centuries past.

Undeterred by national media reports about the situation in Kashmir, thousands of devotees, including women and children besides youth from migrant pandit families throng the temple to seek blessing of Goddess Ragnya Devi.


The pandits said that before their migration from Kashmir, they used to visit the temple on every Shukla Paksh Ashtami round the year and perform ‘hawan’ to please the Mother.
The historic temple of Khirbhawani was built by Maharaja Pratap Singh in 1912 and later renovated by Maharaja Hari Singh.
Different government departments besides a number of private organisations had set up stall for the devotees. The authorities have made all arrangments for the mela at Khir Bhawani temple at Tulmulla in the central Kashmir district of Badgam, where it is said that a holy spring changes its colours from time to time.
The number of devotees, which declined after the migration of the Pandit community from here in early 90s witnessed several-fold increase during the past few years.
However, this has provided an opportunity to Pandits to reunite with their Muslim brethern.
Mr Bhat a retired bureaucrat said under the RKSA, the Nagdandi Ashram Achabal had set up langar for the devotees. We started the langar from May 23 and it will continue till May 28. We are expecting more than 30000 devotees this time, he said adding last year the number of somewhere between 20000 to 25000. However, during 1990 to 1994 only few hundred devotees were visiting the temple.
This, he said, is a sign of confidence building among the two communities who always believed in Kashmiriyat. Mr Bhat said he was happy to see youths from both sides, including those who were born after 90s, meeting, talking and sharing their experience with each other.
Infact, youths employees under Prime Ministers employment schemes have started renovating their houses and started living in their villages, their parents had left in 90s, he said adding this will further help to rebuilt confidence among the members of both the communities.
He said these youths were living in protected places and they were feeling suffocated there.
In his message to both the communities, Mr Bhat said let us leave behind what has happened in the past and start afresh in the valley of Sufis and Saints.