Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday greeted the people of Gujarat on the occasion of Gujarati New Year. 

He took to Twitter and wrote, “Happy New Year to all Gujaratis… !! Happy New Year that is starting from today.” “The new year starting from today will bring happiness and prosperity in your life, keep you healthy and lead you to a new step of progress,” he added. 

The Gujarati New Year, also known as Bestu Varas, commemorates the start of the Hindu calendar’s Kartik month. On this day, devotees flock to temples to offer puja to the gods. People meet their families and friends dressed up in festival finery to wish them a happy new year.

For traders and businesses, the day is especially significant because it marks the start of the financial year, and new ledgers are opened on this auspicious day. The enterprising Gujarati people, mainly engaged in business, celebrate their Bestu Varas with feasts, revelry, and festivals. 

Gujarati New Year falls on the same day as Govardhan Puja in North India, which takes place the day after Diwali. 

The day is also commemorated by worshipping Govardhan Hill, a tradition set off by Lord Krishna in order to protect the people of Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, from excessive rains.

Furthermore, PM Modi arrived in Kedarnath on Friday morning and offered prayers at the Shiva temple there.

The prime minister has unveiled a 12-foot statue of Adi Guru Shankaracharya and inaugurated the rebuilt samadhi of the eighth century seer.

Earlier, on the occasion of Diwali, PM Modi visited soldiers in Jammu’s Nowshera. Since taking office in 2014, the Prime Minister has made it an annual tradition to visit India’s border points on Diwali to bring some cheer to the troops deployed at some of the most remote security check sites. “I have spent each Diwali with soldiers guarding our borders. Today, I have brought along with me the blessings of crores of Indians for our soldiers here,” PM Modi said, according to a Times of India report.