Odisha celebrates Odia New Year, Maha Vishuba Sankranti

Bhubaneswar: Thousands of people on Saturday thronged various temples in the state on the occasion of Odia New Year, also celebrated as Maha Bisuba Sankranti.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on wished the people.

“To all my Odia friends across the world, greetings on Maha Vishuba Sankranti! Have a wonderful year ahead. We take immense pride in the rich Odia culture,” tweeted the Prime Minister.

Maha Bisuba Sankranti, also known as Pana Sankranti, is the beginning of the Odia New Year and marks the day when the new Odia almanac comes into effect.

People marked the advent of the New Year by drinking “pana” or a sweet-sour drink made with raw mango and sugar.

Pana Sankranti, also known as Maha Vishuba Sankranti, is the traditional New Year day festival of Hindus in Odisha.

The festival date is set with the solar cycle of the lunisolar calendar, as the first day of the traditional solar month of Mesha.

The festival is celebrated with visits to Shiva, Shakti, or Hanuman temples, as the day is considered to be the birthday of Hanuman. The darshan is followed by consumption of pana.

There are two types of ‘pana’. One is made with ‘chatua’( a powdered mixture of lia/khai, chuda, wheat, dried peas, ground nuts, pulses) and the other is prepared my mashing fruits.