Bathukamma is made Telangana state festival

Bathukamma festival in Telangana. ( Photo:DC/File)
Bathukamma festival in Telangana. ( Photo:DC/File)

Hyderabad:

The famed Bathukamma will now be a Telangana State festival. The government has declared “Bathukamma Panduga” to be the state festival on the lines of recently declared Bonalu Jatra. This is the second festival in Telangana to be declared a state festival after Bonalu, which was celebrated with state-backing in Secunderabad and Hyderabad in a big way recently.

Youth advancement tourism and culture department issued orders on Thursday in this regard. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao held a meeting with officials of the department of culture and others on June 16 and decided that Bonalu, Bathukamma be declared state festivals and celebrated in a big way across the state.

The Telangana Jagruti, headed by TRS MP Kavitha, had promoted Bathukamma in a big way during the Telangana movement along with Telangana cuisine. “Bathukamma Panduga is an important festival, which is celebrated across Telangana.

It is also an important cultural event of Telangana state, wherein large number of people, particularly women, participate with devotional fervour. Therefore, it is decided to declare the “Bathukamma Panduga”, as state festival duly providing assistance from different government departments and agencies for celebrating the festival,” said principal secretary to Telangana government B.P. Acharya.

Government asked the Department of Culture to take necessary action to celebrate the festival in a befitting manner. Bathukamma is one of the unique festival of Telangana region celebrated during Dasara Navarathri by women. Dressed in the best, the women sing songs in praise of Goddess Gouri during the nine day festivities.

Women seek the blessings of mother Goddes seeking prosperity and a good year. Colours, flowers and water are all intrinsic to the festival and the goddess herself is not one rooted in a shrine but turmeric and placed on top of conical flower arrangements that signify both life and eternity in their colours.

The flowers are immersed in tanks and rivers water on the 10th day. Local flowers like Gunuka, Tangedi, Lotus, Alli, Katla, Teku flowers which bloom in this season in various vibrant colours all across the uncultivated and barren lands are used to create flower arrangements.

Immersion of Bathukamma (Bathukamma visarjan) in water bodies is celebrated with utmost devotion and enthusiasm through out Telangana region.

source: http://wwww.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Nation> Current Affairs / DC Correspondent / July 25th, 2014

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