774th annual Urs celebrations of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar begins today

SEHWAN: The 774th annual Urs celebrations of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz Qalandar begin in shrine city of Sehwan on Saturday, with thousands of devotees from various parts of the country thronged at the Sufi shrine in Sehwan to pay respects.

The Governor of Sindh Kamran Tessori will formally inaugurate the three-day Urs celebrations.

On the first day (today), the inaugural dhamal will be held. A folk wisdom gathering called Sugharan Ji Kachehri will follow. A literary conference will be held on the second day. A musical evening, Malakhro (traditional Sindhi wrestling) and the distribution of Shahbaz Awards are scheduled for the third and last day.

Concerned officials earlier said that all preparations to facilitate several hundred thousand devotees and other visitors in their participation in rituals, programmes and Dhamal, have been completed.

Sehwan wears a festive look with devotees arriving in big numbers. Roads and streets leading to the shrine have been decorated with colourful flags and buntings while the shrine and its surrounding areas have been illuminated.

Various stalls of sweets, toys, ajraks, bangles and edibles have been set up for visitors whereas slides, circus etc have been brought to the open area around the shrine to entertain children.

Elaborating security arrangements, officials said that more than 5,000 police and 300 Rangers personnel have been deployed to ensure peaceful holding of the festival. Over 150 CCTV cameras have been installed inside the shrine and more than 250 outside it. The central control room has been established to monitor the situation.