BALANGIR: The agrarian festival of Nuakhai was celebrated with enthusiasm in Balangir on Friday.
Former BJD leader and Lok Sabha member Baijayant Panda partook of Nabanna (newly harvested rice) in Titlagarh town. Baijayant reached Belpadar village at around 12.30 pm and was taken in a bike rally to Titlagarh. He first went to Ghantasuni temple and offered prayer to the Goddess and later reached the residence of Prashant Sarangi where he ate the newly harvested rice.
Members of the Balangir royal family too celebrated the festival at Sailashree Palace here. The families of A U Singhdeo and Kanak Vardhan Singhdeo, despite their political differences, got together to partake of Nabanna.