Essay on “Sonepur Mela”
On the confluence of Gandak and Ganga lies Sonepur, a station of Northeast Railway. It is the place where Asia’s largest cattle fair is organised. The fair begins on the full moon of Kartik Purnima and it lasts for a month.
In the Sonepur fair, cattle, especially elephants, brought from all over India, are sold. Cattle are decorated and painted in crimson, orange, pink, and purple to facilitate identification. The horns of cattle are coated with silver. All these are done just to convey that cattle are the greatest draw at the fair.
The month-long Sonepur fair also features magic shows and folk dances. In addition to this, the fair also exhibits the dexterity of Indian weavers by erecting stalls, selling handicrafts and handlooms. Although elephants, as well as camel, horses, and birds, are still bought and sold the numbers are dwindling, People from various states come in the fair to have a glimpse of traditional art and handicrafts of Bihar.
