K'taka celebrates harvest festival

Bangalore, Jan 15: Sankranti, the harvest festival, was celebrated with traditional gaiety and enthusiasm in Karnataka today.

Devotees wearing new clothes offered poojas at various temples and celebrated the arrival of Makara Sankranti, the most auspicious occasion for the Hindus.

Men, women and children visited friends and relatives and exchanged sugarcane and a mixture of white til, molasses, dry coconut and peanuts.

Cows and bulls were given a wash and the horns painted in bright orange colour and decorated with garlands. They were taken in a procession in the villages and towns to the accompaniment of drum beats.

No untoward incident was reported during the celebrations from any parts of the state, the police said.

Karnataka Governor Rameshwar Thakur, Chairman of the Karnataka Legislative Council B K Chandrashekhar and Former Chief Ministers H D Kumaraswamy, B S Yeddyurappa and Dharam Singh greeted the people on the occasion.

UNI