The International Gita Mahotsav, one of the biggest festivals of this region which will be celebrated in December in Kurukshetra, is all set to go virtual due to the Covid pandemic this year.

After the state government asked the district administration and Kurukshetra Development Board (KDB) to come out with a strategy regarding the celebrations, the authorities have decided that except for the evening ‘aarti’ at Brahma Sarovar and a saint ‘sammelan’ with a limited gathering as per Covid guidelines, there will be no events with physical gatherings during the upcoming mahotsav.

This year, it will be a nine-day festival (from December 17 to 25). There will be different events including evening aarti, webinars on Gita and a saint sammelan.

The mega event of reciting of Gita shlokas by 18,000 children will also be online. There will be no Saras and Craft Fair.

The administration is eyeing a viewership of over 20 lakh people per day by doing live streaming of the events through all gram panchayats, universities, Red Cross societies, Bal Bhawans, jails across the state and also the official site of Kurukshetra Development Board. The administration will also collaborate with other states for the live streaming.

Besides the KDB and district administration, different departments and institutions, including the Education Department, Tourism Department, North Zone Cultural Centre and Kurukshetra University, will also collaborate for the festival.