The famous Bagwal fair concluded in Champawat's Devidhura peacefully on Wednesday as representatives of all the four khams and temple committee and other sections of the society, taking a departure from the past, threw fruits and flowers at each other in place of stones to perform this annual ritual.
There is a belief that the representatives of the four khams and temple committee and other sections of the society, used to celebrate Bagwal fair by throwing stones at each other every year to please their Goddess Barahi. Interestingly, with people coming from different parts of the country and abroad to witness this fair, its popularity only gained ground over the years.
However, this time the representatives of the temple committee and four ‘khams’ decided to use fruits and flowers as an alternative to the stones to perform this annual rituals as use of stones used to result in injury to the participants every year. At the same time, it is to note that some local people are not happy with replacing stones to perform this annual religious event this time. They are of the view that since it’s a tradition, therefore they must follow the same tradition both in letter and spirit.
The representatives of the temple committee and the four ‘khams’ performed all the rituals with traditional fervour and gaiety on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the officials concerned of the Champwat district administration expressed satisfaction after peaceful conclusion of this religious event. At the same time people particularly the old hand in Kumaon affairs have described performing this annual religious event with the fruits and flowers as historic.