Siraha, May 10

Thousands of fowls and animals were sacrificed today at the Rajdevi Panchawati temple in Lahan Municipality, Siraha.

Devotees from different parts of Nepal and India throng the shrine every year to offer animal sacrifices to the goddess Rajdevi.

Devotees believe that they will be blessed with health and prosperity in life if they pay obeisance to the goddess.

Rajdevi Panchawati Temple Conservation Development Committee Chairperson Agamlal Chaudhary said more than 20,000 fowls and animals were sacrificed at the temple this year. Last year the number stood at 15,000. Most of the people bring pigeons, ducks, goats and chicken for sacrifice.

The temple stands in an area of more than one bigaha area in the middle of a forest.

It is said the temple witnesses the second largest number of animal sacrifices after Bara’s Gadhimai shrine. According to DSP Hira Bahadur Pande, more than 200,000 people visited the temple this year alone. Two hundred police personnel from Nepal Police and Armed Police Force are deployed at the site.