Aug 20, 2025: Today marks the beginning of the important Dogra festival known as "Bacch Dua," which celebrates the sacred bond that exists between mothers and their children.

Dogra mothers observed a strict fast, avoiding fried foods and cow milk, and offered traditional dishes like sweet rotis and soaked black grams in a prayer for their sons' health and longevity.

The "Bacch Dua" activity flourished in temples. Women dressed in traditional Dogra garb gathered at their nearby temples to perform age-old 'Bacch Dua' rituals and sing devotional folk songs. As the elderly women were seen guiding young mothers and newly married in performing the rituals, the festival also provided a platform for younger generations to learn about their heritage from elders, ensuring the continuity of cultural traditions.

One of the few Dogras folk festivals, this one signifies the bond between mother and child and is significant to women. Govatsa Dwadashi or "Bacch Dua" is associated with a variety of myths. Legend has it that a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law misunderstood each other and cooked Bacch (male calf) rather than Mach(fish).

On noticing this blunder, both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law prayed to God and begged Bacch back to life before the mother cow returns from fields. Women celebrate the occasion because God granted their wish. During the festival, a male child, which is symbolic of "Bacch," is used in the ceremonies. Five wish-fulfilling cows (Kamadhenus), according to another legend, emerged from the great churning of the ocean (Samudramanthan). A divine cow named Nanda had also emerged from among these five wish-fulfilling cows. This religious observance is performed to worship this divine cow Nanda.