Gandhidham all set for celebrations

The port town of Gandhidham, inhabited by a large number of Sindhis who shifted from the adjoining Sindh province of Pakistani after partition of India, is all set to witness the state's biggest celebration on the occasion of birth anniversary of the community's most revered deity, Jhulelal, on Saturday. Since the day falls on the second day of the chaitra month when he was born, the day is popularly known as Cheti Chand.

"Every Sindhi panchayat of the area has its own separate celebration on the occasion. But, in Gandhidham, all panchayats celebrate the day under the umbrella of Jhulelal Trust. We will have decorated floats depicting the life and work of this Water God in a long procession from the Jhulelal temple this time. Nowhere else in the country does the community celebrate the festival in the grand way as we do here. The newly-built temple in the heart of the town is also unique in every aspect, and has been praised by Advaniji who never fails to visit it when he visits the border area," Ramesh Dhanvan, spokesperson of the celebration committee in Gandhidham told DNA.

 "The entire port town has been decorated and illuminated. An open invitation has been extended to all residents for community dining on Saturday. As usual, our people are going round the town to tell its residents to have prasad at the community dining," Dhanvan added.