Jaipur, Jan 1 || On the first day of the New Year, major temples across Rajasthan witnessed massive crowds of devotees, with long queues and heavy traffic jams from the early hours of the morning.
In Jaipur, devotees began lining up outside Govinddevji Temple and Motidungri Ganeshji Temple as early as 4 a.m. The heavy influx of pilgrims led to congestion at Badi Chaupar and Chandi Ki Taksal Road in the walled city (Parkote area).
Most of the vehicles entering the area were carrying devotees seeking darshan at Govinddevji Temple. In Sikar, the doors of Khatushyamji Temple have been opened continuously for the past 6 day, and devotees on Thursday will be allowed darshan until late in the night.
To mark the New Year, machine-generated snowfall was arranged at the temple premises, adding to the festive atmosphere.
To manage the crowd, the 17-kilometre-long pedestrian route from Ringas to Khatu has been declared a complete no-vehicle zone from 10 a.m. on Wednesday until 10 a.m. on January 2. In Chittorgarh district, devotees visiting Shri Sanwaliyaji Temple are being allowed entry only through the Meera Circle gate until January 2 as part of crowd-control measures.