Devotees thronged gurdwaras of Punjab and Haryana on Friday to pay obeisance to first Sikh guru Guru Nanak Dev on his 550th birth anniversary on Friday.
Braving the chill, people from different faiths offered early morning prayers on Gurpurab and took part in ‘langars’ and ‘shabad kirtans’.
There was a huge rush of devotees since early morning at the ‘Harmandar Sahib’ in Amritsar, popularly known as the Golden Temple.
A security ring was enforced around all leading Sikh shrines in both the states, including Chandigarh, officials said.
In Haryana, devotees thronged gurdwaras at various places, including Karnal, Ambala and Yamunanagar while there was huge rush of devotees at Sector 34 Gurdwara in Chandigarh.
Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, was born in 1469 at Nankana Sahib near Lahore, now in Pakistan.
Earlier this week, over 3,000 Sikh pilgrims had left for Pakistan to take part in festivities ahead of the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, with the main function being held on the occasion at Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib.
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar had extended greetings to people of the states on the occasion of Gurpurab.