Thousands offer prayers on Maha Shivratri in Punjab, Haryana

Thousands of people offered prayers at various temples across Punjab and Haryana on Monday to mark Maha Shivratri amid tight security arrangements.

In view of intelligence reports of the possibility of a terror strike on this festive occasion, tight security arrangements could be noticed around temples at various places.

Lord Shiva temples were specially decorated for the occasion as people began thronging these places since Sunday night.

At the Shiv Temple at Saketri in Haryana's Panchkula town, adjoining Chandigarh, hundreds of devotees queued up to offer prayers.

"So many people have come here to offer prayers. Many of them have walked several kilometres to reach here. Along the way, we saw many groups walking and others singing devotional songs and dancing," Sonali Thakur, a devotee, said.

People thronged temples in Amritsar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Jalandhar and other places in Punjab and in Ambala, Hisar, Karnal, Panipat and Kurukshetra in Haryana.