SSC
The Nanda Devi fair in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand is usually held in which month?
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ā¾Hide ā“
Answer: Option A ā September
Detailed Solution
The Nanda Devi Mela is held in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, most famously at Almora and Nainital, and also at places such as Bageshwar and Ranikhet. It is held around Nanda Ashtami, the eighth day of the bright half of the month of Bhadrapada, which usually falls in late August or September.
Nanda Devi is regarded as the patron goddess of both Garhwal and Kumaon. She is worshipped as a form of Goddess Parvati and as a daughter of the mountains. The Nanda Devi peak (7,816 m), the second-highest mountain in India and the highest lying entirely within India, is named after her.
The Almora fair is said to have been started by the Chand kings of Kumaon in the 16th-17th century. During the fair, idols of the goddesses Nanda and Sunanda are made from the stems of the banana plant (kadali), worshipped for several days and then immersed in a procession. Folk songs, dances such as the Chholiya dance, and traditional music are an important part of the celebration.
A related and much larger event is the Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra. This is a pilgrimage held about once every 12 years, from Nauti village near Karnaprayag to Homkund near Roopkund, in which a four-horned ram leads the procession. It is one of the longest religious foot journeys in the Himalayas, covering about 280 km.
Other fairs of Uttarakhand include the Kumbh at Haridwar, the Uttarayani fair at Bageshwar (January) and the Jauljibi fair at Pithoragarh (November).
Why not the other options?
- āJanuary is the time of the Uttarayani fair at Bageshwar.
- āApril is the time of the Baisakhi fairs.
- āDecember is not linked to the Nanda Devi fair.
Quick tip
Remember: Nanda Devi Mela = Almora and Nainital, Nanda Ashtami (August-September); Raj Jat Yatra = every 12 years, Nauti to Homkund.
š¬ Discussions on this question
Ask a doubt āŗStill stuck on this question? Ask our faculty and fellow students ā answers appear here.
Ask a doubtMore Festivals & Fairs of India Questions
View all āŗ- Q1.The Sarhul festival of Jharkhand, celebrated with traditional dances when the sal trees blossom, is especially associated with which tribe?
- Q2.'Chad Sukra', a popular traditional dance festival of the Pnar (Jaintia) people of Meghalaya, is celebrated as a:
- Q3.Which festival, celebrated in Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh, honours Gogaji, the folk deity worshipped as a protector against snakes?
- Q4.The 'Doul Utsav', a celebration of Holi linked with the Vaishnava satras, is mainly celebrated in which state?
- Q5.The Bhagoria festival of the Bhil tribes of Madhya Pradesh is associated with which major festival?
More General Knowledge Questions
- Q1.The techniques of Rasa and Bhava used in Indian classical dance trace their origin to which ancient text?Indian Dance Forms
- Q2.Lavani, Powada, Koli, Waghya Murali and Dhangari Gaja are folk dances of which state?Indian Dance Forms
- Q3.The one-act play associated with the Sattriya tradition of Assam is called:Indian Dance Forms
- Q4.Which dance form of Goa is known as the 'Warrior Dance'?Indian Dance Forms
- Q5.Manipuri dance is based on the Rasleela themes of:Indian Dance Forms
Festivals & Fairs of India ā Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Festivals & Fairs of India, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the religious, harvest, tribal and cultural festivals of India, the fairs (melas) held across the country, and the states, communities and seasons linked to them. It also includes festivals listed by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage, such as Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja in Kolkata. Most questions ask which state celebrates a festival, which tribe it belongs to, or what event it marks. Harvest festivals are especially common: Pongal (Tamil Nadu), Onam (Kerala), Bihu (Assam), Lohri and Baisakhi (Punjab) and Nuakhai (Odisha). Fairs such as the Pushkar camel fair (Rajasthan) and the Sonepur cattle fair (Bihar) are also frequently tested. Revise festivals state by state. Practise the festivals and fairs questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.