Sheetala Mata Fair

Location: Seel-ki-Doongri village near Jaipur, Rajasthan
Time of the year:March-April
Highlights: Cattle fair and a small market
Significance: Held in the honour of Sheetla Mata, local goddess of epidemic diseases

The Sheetla Mata Fair is held every year in Seel-Ki-Doongri village (chaksu) near Jaipur in the month of March-April. The fair lasts for a day and is held in the honour of Sheetla Mata.

A number of visitors from far and wide visit the fair each year. It was believed that the epidemic diseases such as chicken pox were spread because of the wrath of the Sheetla Mata. The people worship her so that the diseases do not spread. The image of the goddess is sculpted out in red sandstone.

Significance of the Fair:

Sheetla Mata festival is organized to honor the revered deity Sheetla Mata. The deity is known as the 'goddess of epidemics'. A red shrine represents the deity.

Highlights of the Fair:

Colourful Market

A temporary market is set up at the fair where people from villages are seen trading in products and goods that include shoes, utensils, foodstuff, clothes and agricultural implements. The atmosphere is that of a picnic.

Cattle Fair

Another tourist attraction at the Sheetla Mata fair is the cattle fair arranged during the fair.
In this fair, rewards are given to the breeders who have the finest quality of livestock. A large number of rural people can also be seen trading over clothes, shoes, utensils, food and agricultural implements.

Accessibility:

To reach the Sheetla Mata fair you can take regular buses from Jaipur-Tonk, Jaipur-Kota, Jaipur-Deoli routes. The nearest railway station is Chaksu on the Jaipur-Sawai Madhopur subdivision of Western Railway.

Visiting the fair will surely a lifetime experience for anyone. Watching the rural folks praying to the goddess, is a spectacle to behold.