People from different walks of life celebrated Basant Panchami, which is also known as Saraswati Puja. This is a Hindu festival that is celebrated to worship Goddess Saraswati.

Thousands of people gathered at Lele Saraswatikunda to worship Saraswati. From early morning, People worshiping Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge and wisdom in various parts of the country.

Saraswati Puja was organized in schools and other educational institutions. People visited temples to worship goddess Saraswati. A special Basanta Shrawan program was also organized at Hanumandhoka Durbar Square premises in Kathmandu.

President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, Vice-President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Prime Minister and other dignitaries also attended the function.

Many families mark this day by sitting with young children, encouraging them to write their first words with their fingers, while some just study or create music together.

The festival is considered the best day for starting a new venture and making commitment to good causes. Goddess Saraswati is worshiped with various names such as Bharati, Sharada, Jagatmata, Bageshwari, Kaumari, Baradayani and Kamdhenu.

Basant Panchami also marks the beginning of spring season.

The festival is celebrated on the fifth day of the month of Magh’, that is the onset of the spring season. Basant Panchami also announces the arrival of Holi’ which take place forty days later. The Vasant Utsava on Panchami is celebrated forty days before Spring, because any season's transition period is 40 days, and after that the season comes in to full bloom.

On this day people worship goddess Sarasvati. As per Hindu mythology, Saraswati is the goddess of wisdom, intellect and learning. She has four hands which symbolize ego, intellect, alertness and the mind. She is often pictured seated on a lotus or a peacock, wearing a white dress.

On this festival, the colour yellow holds a special meaning as it signifies the brilliance of nature and the vibrancy of life. The whole place bursts with yellow during the festival. The young girls on this day wear bright yellow dresses and participate in the festivities. People dress in yellow and offer yellow flowers to the goddesses. Even special pastry of vibrant yellow colour and mild fragrance are also prepared like Kesari Sheera or Kesari Halwa, Kheer, Boondi, Rajbhog. Here are some recipes which you can try out this Basant Panchami.