VIJAYAWADA: Raksha Bandhan, the festival celebrating the bond between a brother and a sister, was celebrated with much enthusiasm in the city here on Sunday.
The Hindu Dharma Prachara Parishad of TTD explained the religious importance of ‘Sravana Pournami’ to the people by organising ‘Sri Padmavathi Srinivasa Kalyanotsava Rakshadharana’ at TTD Kalyana Mandapam in which 1,000 students from private schools and colleges participated.
Even as the TTD distributed rakhis to the students, endowment commissioner Ch Durga Prasad said that the programme was being conducted by the TTD every year to highlight the significance of ‘Sravana Pournami’ and the importance of Raksha Bandhan among the youths.
The members of Prajapita Brahmakumari Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya visited the Mantena Satyanarana Raju Nature Cure Hospital and tied rakhis to patients, doctors and staff. One of the member of the Samaj, Bharati said that they started tying rakhis to the VIPs and other people in the city four days before the festival.
Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh also celebrated the festival by distributing around 6,000 rakhis to students at Edify School in Patamata and four other schools in One Town area.
The festival also brought cheers to the womenfolk as they were flooded with gifts of all kinds from their brothers. “This festival strengthens the bond between sisters and brothers. My brother gifted me a beautiful watch,” S Susmitha of Usha Rama Engineering College.
Cashing in on the demand, traders sold rakhis for higher prices. A simple rakhi made of colourful threads was sold for `20, while a fancy rakhi costed up to `300. “The price for rakhis has increased by 20 to 30 per cent this year as compared to last year.
Even though the prices soared, sales are quite normal like every year,” K Raju, owner of Kalanjali Fancy Store in the city said.