Gai or Cow Puja is being observed throughout the country today on the third day of the five-day-long Tihar festival celebrated by the Hindus in the country. The cow is worshipped as per the religious belief that we get love from her like a mother. The day today is also locally called Gai Tihar. The cow is garlanded and fed various delicacies.

Worshiping cows as sacred is a tradition since ancient Vedic times. Cows are revered as cow mothers because the milk given by cows is as nutritious as the milk given by human mothers.

In some parts of Nepal and some communities, there is a tradition of worshiping cow on the day of Kartik Krishna Aunsi, but there is a classical belief that cows should be worshiped at the end of Aunsi and at the beginning of Pratipada, said Nepal Calendar Determination Committee Member Prof Dr Ram Chandra Gautam.

There is also a religious belief that if the Rakshabandhan tied on the right hand is tied to the cow's tail after cow worship, the cow will help cross the river Vaitarani to go to heaven after death.