Bihar Jharkhand Association of North America (BJANA) celebrates Chhath Puja  

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More than 1, 500 members attended Chhath puja celebration at Donaldson Park in Highland Park, New Jersey, hosted by the Bihar Jharkhand Association of North America.

Chhath Puja is one of the most auspicious festivals in Bihar, Jharkhand, and Eastern Uttar Pradesh. It is dedicated to Surya Bhagwaan (Sun God), who people believe sustains life on the earth. Chhath is celebrated globally with the same level of emotion, zeal, and fervor, organizers said in a press release.

This was the 6th community-wide Chhath puja for BJANA, the organization’s signature event and this year, the festival was also watched and enjoyed by people from Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Telangana, Gujarat, Odisha, and Nepal, the press release said. The event was broadcast live on Facebook and other social media platforms.

Among the attendees was India’s Rajya Sabah Member  Beeda Masthan Rao Yadav from Andhra Pradesh. He congratulated BJANA for organizing this event on such a large scale and wished the people of the Indian diaspora on this festival. He offered arghya to sun God and prayed for the prosperity of the community.

This festival in North America was pioneered by BJANA, organizers maintain. Around 30 Vratis (people who keep a fast) carried out the puja together this year.

The Consul General of India in New York Randhir Jaiswal and Dr. Abha Jaiswal joined the prayers and congratulated the BJANA Team for organizing an event that brings the community together.

Volunteers and committee members conducted the event over 4 days. BJANA president Anurag Kumar welcomed all the vratis and devotees to this Mahaparv and thanked them for coming in such huge numbers and said it reminded him of Chhath celebration back home.

Vice President of BJANA Sanjeev Singh said, “More and more people are getting associated with the organization and the festivity and grandeur of the festival ripples through air in which BJANA has proved its niche.”

Prasad was made in large quantities so that no visitors would leave without it. Vratis observing the 36 hours fast blessed all visitors after offering the morning arghya to the rising sun.