KANCHANPUR: The Sudurpaschim Province Government has announced public holiday today on the occasion of Gaura Parba.

The Council of the Ministers of the Sudurpaschim Province Government decided to announce public holiday for today in all the government and public institutions in the province, Spokesperson at the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law Bishnu Dutta Awasthi said.

Earlier, different social organisations and political parties had criticized the province government for curtailing the public holiday being given on the occasion of Gaura Parba.

Meanwhile, all nine local levels in the district of Kanchanpur have given public holiday on Gaura Parba.

Gaura Parba is a major festival of the Sudurpaschim Province and it is believed that Gauri Devi or Parbati got married to Lord Shiva Maheshwar as she observed fasting with devotion to get Lord Shiva.

Since then, this festival is being observed in memory of the marriage of Gauri Devi and Lord Shiva Maheshwar.

On the first day of the festival, the married women mark the beginning of the festival by soaking five types of grains in water in a copper pot.

The collection of the five grains including wheat, peas, and black gram is known as Biruda in the local dialect.

And, Biruda is received as Prasad. As per the tradition, the second day is a day of fasting during which the women prepare the portraits of Gaura Devi or goddess in the wee hours by visiting the source of water or well.

RSS