KATHMANDU, Dec 7 : The sale and consumption of meat, alcohol and other intoxicants have been restricted around the Pashupatinath Temple area in Kathmandu for a week from Thursday due to the Hindu festival Bala Chaturdashi, authorities said.
Situated on the banks of the holy River Bagmati on the eastern outskirts of Kathmandu, Pashupatinath is the most revered Hindu temple in Nepal. It attracts hundreds and thousands of Hindu pilgrims from across the world apart from being a major tourist destination.
The prohibition order will be in effect from December 7 to December 13 when Bala Chaturdashi, also known as the Shatvijaropan festival, will be celebrated, the District Administration Office (DAO) in Kathmandu said.
The festival, which falls on Saturday this time as per the Lunar calendar, is observed by Hindus who lost their family members during the year.
During the festival, seven types of grains mixed with fruits are sprinkled at the Shleshmantak Forest near the Pashupatinath Temple in memory of the deceased relatives.
According to a notice issued by the DAO, meat, liquor and intoxicants are prohibited from Gaushala Mitrapark Road to the east, the Pashupati area to the west, Gaushala Tilganga Ring Road to the north and Mitrapark-Umakund-Gaurighat to Guhrieshwari to the south.
The order also said that to maintain law and order, religious, cultural, dignity and purity during the Bala Chaturdashi festival, the production, sale, transportation, storage and consumption of these substances is also not allowed. (PTI)
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