Ajmer, March 18: All roads leading to Ajmer in Rajasthan will be jammed over next week with heavy traffic as devotees will throng in large numbers to commemorate the 806th Urs of Ajmer Sharif. The Ajmer Sharif Dargah, a sufi shrine of sufi saint, Moinuddin Chishti is located at Ajmer, Rajasthan. The shrine has the Maqbara (grave) of the revered saint Chisti.

The Urs festival is an annual festival held at Ajmer which commemorates the death anniversary of the Sufi saint Moinuddin Chishti. It must be noted that Chisthti is the founder of the Chishtiya Sufi order in India.

This year, devotees will be celebrating the 806th annual urs of the Sufi saint at the 12th-century shrine in Ajmer. The Urs Ajmer festival in India is held over six days and features night-long qawwali singing. Urs will start with moon sighting which is expected on March 19. The anniversary is celebrated in the seventh month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Thousands of pilgrims visit the shrine from all over India and abroad. The dargah of Moinuddin Chishti (Gharib Nawaz -Benefactor of the Poor), is an international waqf, an Islamic mortmain managed by the Dargah Khwaja Saheb Act, 1955 of the Government of India.

Here is the Schedule of 806th URS Celebrations in Ajmer:

Date Event
March 14, 2018 Flag Ceremony
March 19, 2018 URS Begins
March 19, 2018 Jannati Darwaza Will Open
March 23, 2018 URS Namaz-e-Jumma
March 24, 2018 Chatti Sharif (Annual Fateha)
March 27, 2018 URS Bada Qul

Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed over the "chaadar" to Minister of State for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Minister of State in the PMO Jitendra Singh here for offering it at the shrine during the 'Urs' (festival) which starts on March 30. A 'chaadar' (shawl) will be offered at the famous Ajmer Dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti on behalf of the Prime Minister who on Friday hailed the Sufi saint as a "symbol of great spiritual traditions of India".

As per reports, arrangements are being made for live telecast as PM Modi is believed to convey his best wishes to all the devotees on the occasion of 806th Urs of Ajmer Sharif. Ajmer Sharif Dargah is 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) away from the main central Ajmer Railway station and situated at the foot of the Taragarh hill. The sixth day of the Urs is regarded as the most special and auspicious. It is called “Chhati Sharif”. It is celebrated on the 6th Rajab between 10:00 A.M. and 1:30 p.m. inside the Mazaar Sharif.

It must be noted that Shijra is read by duty bound Khadims of Moinuddin Chishti, and then there is Fariyad (prayers). This time, processions will not be allowed. Emergency services will operate 24 hours and vigilance will be kept on every suspicious person and for the first time there will be CCTV cameras in dargah region to keep watch on every activity in the region and control room will work 24 hours.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 18, 2018 06:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).