Devotees throng banks of river Ganges in UP to mark 'Ganga Dussehra'
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Varanasi/ Allahabad, May 28 (ANI): Devout Hindus across northern India took a holy dip in river Ganges on Thursday (May 28) to celebrate the festival 'Ganga Dussehra', which marks the descent of river Ganges on the earth. In temple town of Varanasi, priests performed traditional Hindu rituals on the banks of the river and chanted hymns as the devotees offered prayers and sought blessings. Despite heavy pollution in the Ganges, for Hindus, it is a symbol of purity. It is believed that its water bestows salvation to the dying and new life to the living. In Allahabad city also, people took holy dip in the river and offered prayers to mark the festival. Regarded as a celestial river originating in the heavens, the legend holds that the Ganges was gifted to mankind in response to the great penance undertaken by King Bhagirath, after whom she is also called Bhagirathi. Largest of the rivers in India, the Ganges rises at Gangotri, high in the snow-clad Himalayas and after cascading down mighty boulders, it flows into the hot Indian plains on its final destination to the Bay of Bengal.
