Avail free ride on buses on Raksha-Bandhan tomorrow

On occasion of Raksha-Bandhan tomorrow women would have free ride on buses of Haryana Roadways and Delhi Transport Corporation. In Haryana Roadways buses children upto 15 years of age also entitled to free ride.

Shops and malls geared up to attract customers with special discounts. With diamond-studded Rakhis to hand-made rakhis to eco-friendly rakhis many varieties are available on this occasion of brother-sister love.

Sisters tie a sacred thread around wrist of her brothers and brothers vow to protect their sisters. 'Raksha-bandhan' is Hindi for 'bond of protection' and it is being celebrated across north-India; now it spreads all through the country.

In Old Faridabad the historical Pankha Mela is being organised with traditional fervour. The famous Pathwari temple near Barhi pond in Old Faridabad is being decked up and tomorrow the silver Pankha which hangs on the idol of the goddess in the sanctum sanctorum would be taken out in a procession, followed by a dozen tableaus. The Pankha has been created at Dariban Kalan in Chandni Chowk in Delhi for the last 40 years. After passing through various roads in the city the procession would be returned to the temple in the night. Thousands of people trail the procession with band playing the devotional songs.

The only word of caution for the commuters on Faridabad-Delhi route is that historically this day witness heavy traffic.

According to a report in The Hindu, the Rakhi festival has turned into a rallying point for hundreds of village women near Renuka in Himachal Pradesh's Sirmaur district as they pledge to protect their 'brother' trees that will be drowned by the Renuka hydroelectric project. Women from villages are tying rakhis on the trees as the dam aimed at providing drinking water to New Delhi will inundate them.