The traditional Mahaa Wagyawai Powe festival of indigenous people was celebrated in Bandarban amidst festivity.

Though the four-day festival began last Monday, the main festival was celebrated on Wednesday to welcome Probarana Pumima, the second largest festival in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, populated by a wide range of ethnic communities.

However, the plain district Buddhists celebrated Probarana festival on Tuesday.

Shuvo ProbaronaPumima, the second largest festival of the Buddhist community, also known as Ashwini Pumima, marks the

conclusion of the three-month long seclusion of the monks inside their monasteries for self-edification and atonement of defile-

Later, the month long Kathin Chibar Dan is followed by Probarana festival, when devotees present monks with robes for the welfare of every being and entire mankind.

In the course of the three-day celebrations, the indigenous Buddhists offered Pradeep (candle) Puja, organised traditional cultural programmes, performed rituals, a cake festival, took out chariots in the district town, and released colourful paper lanterns

(Famish) in the evening.

A number of tourists from home and abroad joined in with the indigenous devotees to enjoy the century-old festival.

Different organisations of indigenous people arranged several programmes to celebrate Mahaa Wagyawai Powe festival across the district.

Bandarban Utsab Udjapon Parishad President, Moung Ching Nue Marma said this year the Mahaa Wagyawai Powe (Probarona Pumima) festival was celebrated with the aim of creating social awareness on environment preservation and cleanliness of the district town.