Jammu, Aug.13 (ANI): Security men guarding India's borders were reminded of their families and their homes as local girls tied Rakhis (sacred thread) on their wrists on Raksha Bandhan, the Hindu festival celebrated to mark the bond between siblings.
Raksha Bandhan was celebrated on Saturday.
On the occasion of Raksha Bandhan, a sister ties the Rakhi on the wrist of her brother as a token of love and wishes him prosperity and happiness.
On his part, a brother pledges to protect his sisters' honour and in return, offers some cash or gifts to her.
Army men often miss out such special occasions due to call of duty and therefore girls from Jammu district in India's northern Jammu and Kashmir state visited these men at their post to tie Rakhi on their wrists.
The men were deeply touched by the girls' warm gesture and expressed their happiness at celebrating the festival with them.
"Most of the time, we are deployed at the border and are unable to celebrate festivals at our place. Today too we have not been able to go home but by celebrating in such a way we have been reminded of the sweet memories of home. With rakhis on our wrists, we are not feeling left out in the festivities and these girls remind us so much of our sisters," said V M Bala, Commandant, 32 Battalion, BSF.
Young girls enthusiastically tied rakhis on the cadres' wrists as they received blessings in return.
"Since they can't go homes for the festivities, we have come here to tie Rakhi on their wrists so that they do not feel that they are far away from their family. I felt content after tying rakhis to these army men," said local girl Tanvi.
A similar scene was seen at Bikaner in India's northwestern Rajasthan state, where local girls tied colourful rakhis to the cadres of another Artillery Regiment.
"Today we have come here to tie Rakhi on the BSF personnel. We always tie rakhi on our brothers' wrists but today we have tied rakhis on our nation's brothers' wrists. We feel proud and in return, they have promised to protect our nation and us," said local Sunita.
In return, security men promised to protect the girls by guarding the Indian borders from any danger.
"We are celebrating Rakhi today with local girls and it seems just like being at home. We have promised to protect them and the country," said Avinash Rathore, BSF cadre.
The origin of Raksha Bandhan dates back to several centuries to the era when an upper caste Hindu queen Rani Roopmati, in the course of a battle, sent a Rakhi thread to Mughal ruler Humayun requesting protection from the enemy.
Emperor Humayun accepted the thread and honoured her request.
Since then, the tradition has continued in most Hindu families, particularly in northern, central and western parts of India.
Even though the festival is deeply rooted in ancient Indian traditions, the younger generation views it more as a time for family get-together.(ANI)
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