People throng Bhaktapur to celebrate the Bisket Jatra on Friday. (Photo source : annapurnapost daily)
This year witnessed the lowest-ever turnout of people in the over 1,400 years old tradition of raising and pulling down the Linga (a wooden pole), which is a part of Bisket Jatra, at Bhelukhel in Bhaktapur due to political unrest of the country.

Report quoted Hirakaji Shrestha (80), a resident of Panauti, who has been attending the Jatra more or less regularly since he was 20, as saying, “One used to hardly get space to stand here on Jatra days in the past years.” Unlike in the past years when approximately 100,000 people used to take part in the event, Shrestha said only around 5,000 people showed up Saturday to witness the spectacular scene of the approximately 30m tall pole being pulled down.

Local resident Pratap Kasaju said the people have developed an indifferent attitude towards the Jatra, adding, youths was seen at the scene, but most of them were just observers rather than a part of the Jatra.

The pulling of the chariot of Bhairab from Nyatpole to Bhelukhel marks the beginning of Jatra four days before the advent of Nepali New Year. The upper tole (settlement) and lower tole vie to pull the chariot, in the belief that a win brings good luck to the victorious settlement the entire year.

Legend has it that the Linga is raised to mark the day when a visitor slaughtered two man-eating serpents that used to swallow a person every day in the area. nepalnews.com pb Apr 15 06