Close to 1.5 million visitors jammed the two-week-long Maha Shivaratri Festival and Industrial Trade Fair which began at Pashupatinath on March 8, a day after the Maha Shivaratri festival honour the Hindu deity Shiva. The fair concludes on Saturday.

According to the organizer, the visitors bought goods worth Rs200 million at the fair. The annual event at Pashupatinath features shops, amusement rides and food stalls.

“Around 1.5 million visitors, including 100,000 foreign tourists, have attended the fair so far,” said Sandeep Mahat, chairman of Audyogik Shanti Nepal Sanstha, the organiser.

There are over 300 stalls selling handicrafts, food, clothing, utensils and shoes. Replicas of the Amarnath and Vaishnodevi caves, two very holy Hindu shrines in India’s Jammu and Kashmir state, were the prime attractions at the fair.

“Every year, a fair has been organised at Pashupatinath during Maha Shivaratri. This year too it was a success,” said Pawan Agrawal, a member of the organising committee. “We could showcase Nepali products to thousands of people during the fair which is its biggest achievement.”

Although the fair closes on Saturday, the organisers said the amusement ride and the replicas of Amarnath and Vaishnodevi caves would be kept intact for one more month.

Sushil Pokhrel, a student who visited the fair on Friday, said that it was successful in blending pilgrimage with entertainment and trade. “After worshipping Pashupatinath, the fair gives visitors like us an opportunity to shop at decent prices,” he said.