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The Jawans of Indian Army''s Durga Battalion on Thursday celebrated Bhai Dooj with women and girls at Line of Control (LoC) in Gulpur sector in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir. Women applied ''tika'' on the forehead of the army personnel and performed other rituals. "Our Battalion is posted here at Loc and today is the festival of Bhai Dooj. Our sisters are at home and we can''t meet them but here the sisters of Poonch celebrated the festival with us," said an Army officer.
Another Army Officer posted here at LoC said that the sister of Poonch has come to celebrate Bhai Dooj with them so that they don''t miss their own sisters. "We want to celebrate this festival like every year and wish that our country continues to celebrate freedom in this way and we can give a befitting reply to the enemy," he added. A woman who came to celebrate Bhai Dooj with Indian Army personnel said that wished for the long and healthy lives of the jawans. "All the women of Poonch are here to celebrate Bhai Dooj with Indian Army soldiers. We celebrate Bhai Dooj at our home every year but we are here to apply tilak to the jawans who are proud of India. We wish them a long and healthy life," she added. Bhai Dooj is a festival symbolizing the love of brother-sister, which traditionally marks the bond between the siblings. On this day, sisters pray for their brothers to have long and happy lives by applying ''Tika'' on the latter''s forehead. Both brothers and sisters exchange gifts and sweets on occasion. This year the festival is celebrated for two days. In some parts of the country the Bhai Dooj was held yesterday and in some parts is also being celebrated today. Bhai Dooj is also known as Bhau Beej and Bhathru Dwithiya. As per Hindu traditions, it is believed that Goddess Yamuna fed her brother Yamraj on Kartik Dwitiya at her own home. Since then this day is also known as Yama Dwitiya. On the second lunar day of Shukla Paksha in the Vikram Samvat Hindu calendar or of Shalivahan Shaka calendar month of Kartika, people celebrate Bhai Dooj, Bhaubeej, Bhai Tika, or Bhai Phonta. Sisters apply tilak to their brother''s foreheads and follow other rituals such as fasting and puja on this day to wish them a long and prosperous life. In return, brothers give their sisters a gift and promise to protect them always. Raksha Bandhan and Bhai Dooj are quite similar up to an extent, however, on Bhai Dooj, sisters do not tie a thread or Rakhi on the wrists of their brothers like they do on Raksha Bandhan. Numerous ancient Hindu scriptures have mentioned Bhai Dooj as a celebration of bond and eternal love between brothers and sisters. There are several tales associated with the origin of the occasion and the most well-known are those of Lord Krishna and Yamraj. (ANI)
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