Nandurbar's Khodai Mata fair, a 250-year tradition, begins today

Nandurbar: The Shri Khodai Mata fair, devoted to the city's presiding goddess and revered by lakhs of devotees from Khandesh, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, begins on Sunday, October 11. Held during Navratri, the fair has a tradition of about 250 years and runs this year from October 11 to 20. The temple has been freshly painted and lit up.

The first right to worship the goddess still belongs to local Adivasi devotees, and the fair truly begins only after they perform the puja. Rides, swings, toy and household-goods sellers and food stalls have arrived in large numbers, along with sugarcane-juice and cold-drink stalls because of the heat.

Because of the crowds, parking is banned on the main roads around the temple. The roads from Jagtapwadi junction to the market committee and from D.R. High School to the Santoshi Mata temple will be no-vehicle zones, with parking for devotees at the GTP College ground and near the BSNL office.

CCTV cameras will watch the temple and the fairground, plainclothes police have been deployed, and the municipal council has arranged drinking water, temporary toilets and a 24-hour health team.

Source: Esakal