Ambubachi Mela gets under way with fanfare

Guwahati: The annual four-day Ambubachi Mela at Kamakhya temple in Guwahati has got underway, with lakhs of devotees and tourists thronging the Shaktipeeth atop Nilachal hill.
The Mela takes place for four days during which the Mother Goddess is believed to undergo her menstrual cycle and all worship is stopped during the period.
Devotees from across the country as well as abroad visit the Kamakhya temple during this time and depart after paying their obeisance to the Goddess when temple doors open.
The Mela was officially opened by Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal and Union Minister of State (Independent) for Tourism and Culture Prahlad Singh Patel on Friday.
Speaking on the occasion, Patel said he was fortunate to get the opportunity to attend Ambubachi Mela as the first programme after assuming office and he stressed on the need to explore more prospects for developing tourism in the state taking advantage of vast natural resources.
CM Sonowal said the Ambubachi Mela has provided an opportunity to welcome tourists and devotees from different parts of the country as well as the world. Urging the people of Guwahati to play the role of hosts like the previous years to make this year’s Ambubachi Mela a grand success, the chief minister said that it was every citizen’s moral obligation to make the visitors feel welcome in the state and enable them to take back good memories of Assam with them.
Besides the facilities for food, lodging, drinking water, sanitation, etc. provided by the government, private organisations have also chipped in with free services for the devotees. (UNI)