second bigger Urs of the country reaches its culminations

Hardwar, Apr 10 (UNI) The second biggest Urs of the country, at Peeran Kaliyar, which began on March 31, will reach its culmination tomorrow with the ''Bari Roshani'' (mega illumination).

According to the SDM Roorkee and mela officer, Sachin Kurve ''nearly 10 lakh pilgrims are likely to congregate during the mega event.'' A batch of 150 pilgrims from Pakistan has also come to pay their obeisance at the dargah he added.

SSP Abhinav Kumar said elaborate security arrangements had been made for the Urs. A large number of police personnel, sniffer dogs, units of divers, fire extinguishers and bomb disposal squads had been deployed in the mela area. A Haj house, the fourth in the country, has also been built to provide lodging and boarding facilities for the pilgrims.

Second only to Ajmer Urs in magnitude, the Urs at Peeran Kaliyar is held every year in the memory of the famous Sufi saint Sabir Saheb or Sabir Kaliyari who preached the doctrine of universal brotherhood and the unity of mankind.

The religious fair is a shining example of communal amity and lakhs of ''zayreens'' (devotees), both Muslims and Hindus, from the country as well as from abroad, visit the dargah (mausoleum) of the Sufi saint during the Urs every year.

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