Festive fervour fills the air across Odisha on the auspicious occasion of Kartik Purnima. Devotees took part in the age-old Boita Bandana ritual, a symbolic tribute to the state’s glorious maritime past.

From the early hours, devotees gathered at rivers, ponds, and water bodies to set afloat miniature boats made of banana bark, adorned with lamps, incense, betel leaves, and areca nuts.

The chants of “Aa Ka Ma Bai, Paan Gua Thoi, Paan Gua Tora, Maasa Kara Dharma Mora…” resonated across the state, filling the air with devotion.

Major sites such as Puri beach, Chandrabhaga coast, Bhubaneswar’s Bindusagar tank, and Cuttack’s Gadagadia ghat witnessed massive gatherings, as thousands offered prayers and performed the traditional ritual after taking a holy dip.

Remembering Odisha’s Ancient Ma

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