Raipur, 18 October 2020. The first round of Fulrath completed the major attraction of the world famous Bastar Dussehra on Sunday. Around 400 villagers who had arrived from 36 villages of Jagdalpur and Tokapal tehsil took this chariot of eight wheels adorned with flowers and made a rounding of Golbazar.
It is worth mentioning that Kakatiya King Purushottam Dev once offered pilgrimage to Sri Jagannathpuri on foot and offered gold coins and gold Bhushan etc. Here King Purushottam Dev was conferred with the title of Rathpati. When King Purushottam Dev returned to Bastar from Puri Dham, he started the tradition of celebrating Dussehra festival with great pomp and since then it is customary to drive chariots in Goncha and Dussehra festivals.
In Bastar Dussehra, a large number of villagers from 36 villages of Jagdalpur and Tokapal tehsils arrive here every year to pull the Fulrath from the second date of Sharadiya Navratri to Saptami Tithi. In view of the transition of Corona this year, it was decided by Bastar Dussehra Committee and District Administration to celebrate this ritual with utmost care and about 400 healthy youth were given the responsibility to participate in this ritual. Along with keeping all these youths already in quarantine, corona examination has also been done to eliminate any possibility of infection.
Raipur: Fulrath’s first circumambulation completed in Bastar Dussehra
