It was a sea of faith on Wednesday as thousands of devotees thronged the riverbanks and artificial water bodies in Jamshedpur, offering prayers to the setting sun.

The Subernarekha river ghat at Sakchi which saw the maximum footfall of Chhath devotees turned into a colourful spectacle just before the sunset.

It was a confluence of colour as devotees, clad in traditional attire, crowded the ghat.

Women and men assembled at the ghat to offer 'arghya' (offering to gods) to the setting sun.

Sunita Sinha, a resident of Sakchi said, " The weather was quite good today. I offered prayers to the Sun God with my family. This is one of the toughest festivals as the people performing it needs to take care of a lot of the cleanliness. One of the main reasons that make this puja special is the 'Prasad' that is distributed after the puja."

Domuhani Ghat at Sonari, which is the confluence of river Subernarekha and Kharkai also drew a huge number of Chhath devotees and so did Bodhanwala Ghat on the banks of river Kharkai which drew a large crowd.

Around 700 jawans of Jharkhand Armed Police and district police maintained vigil near the river ghats.

A medical team (from the district health department) and ambulance (from a private hospital) were kept on standby at Subernarekha ghat and Bodhanwala Ghat to cater to any emergencies.

Danger zones were demarcated with red flags and ropes at various river ghats by Jamshedpur Notified Area Committee (JNAC) while local swimmers and divers were kept on stand-by at Subernarekha ghat and Domuhani.

Devotees also offered prayers to the setting Sun at Pandey Ghat, Bhuiyandih Ghat, Sub-station Ghat and at several artificial water bodies.

Chhath was also celebrated with festive fervour at the Surya Temple in Sidhgora.

According to devotees, Chhath Puja is not just a festival but a celebration of happiness and love blended with devotion that brings families and friends together.