Why in news:

• The district administration is making elaborate preparations to ensure the peaceful conduct of the upcoming Hola Mohalla fair at the Dera Baba Vadbhag Singh shrine in Mairi village, scheduled to be held from February 27 to March 9.

Key Points:

• Notably, around 5 lakh devotees, mostly from Punjab, visit Dera Baba Vadbhag Singh shrine at Mairi village during the fair every year.
• As detailed by the Deputy Commissioner Raghav Sharma, the shrine and its periphery will be divided into 10 sectors, each under the command of a sector magistrate and a sector police officer. The DC informed that ADC Mahender Pal Gurjar will be the mela officer, while the Amb SDM will be the additional mela officer. The Una ASP and Amb DSP have been designated as the mela police officer and mela additional police officer, respectively.
• The DC further said prior permission from the ADC shall be required by the organisers of ‘langars’ and cleanliness and sanitation would have to be maintained. He directed officials of the Jal Shakti Department to ensure proper chlorination of drinking water besides its adequate supply. Health Department has been to set up a dispensary with adequate supply of emergency medicines and equipment to deal with any exigency.
• Beating of drums, playing brass bands and other musical instruments would be totally prohibited during the fair.

Dera Baba Vadbhag Singh Gurudwara

• Dera Baba Vadbhag Singh Gurudwara is a shrine of Dera Baba Vadbhag Singh.
• It is located in Mairi village in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is known for Hola mahalla. Visitors come from North Indian states and union territories including Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh.
• The shrine is about 10 km from Amb. Nehrian, a small hilly village serves as an entry point to the Holy place. Followers believe visiting the dera (shrine) cure patients possessed by evil spirits or affected with other malign influences.
• Baba Vadbhag Singh was born at Kartarpur in 1715 A.D.
• He was the son of Baba Ram Singh and Mata Raj Kaur. He was a descendant of Dhir Mal, the first cousin of Dasam Padshahi Guru Gobind Singh. He succeeded to the hereditary gaddi (religious seat) of Sodhis of Kartarpur.
• The Hola Mohalla fair is held at Dera Vadbhag Singh on the full moon day in the Vikrami month of Phalgun (February-March). The fair lasts for ten days.