By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Mar. 19: Ghode Jatra, the annual horse festival of Nepal Army, will be held in the absence of high level dignitaries due to COVID-19 fears this year.
According to Nepal Army Headquarters, the annual horse riding festival, which falls on March 24 this year, will be marked at Tundikhel in the presence of limited and concerned NA officials.
“We have not sent any official invitation to high level dignitaries, including President Bidya Devi Bhandari, who is also the Supreme Commander of Nepali Army, this year after the government issued a precaution warning all not to attend any mass function and gathering,” Brigadier General and spokesperson of NA Bigyan Dev Pandey said.
But as a tradition, the NA has, however, decided to organise the function with limited officials from the Nepali Army to give the function a ceremonial continuation, Pandey said.
Instead of allowing people to watch the function live at Tundikhel, the NA has managed to broadcast the event live by various televisions, according to a statement of the Directorate of Public Relations and Information (DPR&I).
Meanwhile, the NA has said that the institution was always in a ready position to act and deploy accordingly for the preparation and control of the possible spread of the deadly virus in Nepal.
Nepal Army is marking the festival at Tundikhel with a belief that on the particular day the Gurumapa demon was slain. On the day, the soldiers race the horses and display warfare techniques to keep devil’s spirit away by pounding it with horse hooves.
A dedicated team of soldiers from the Nepal Cavalry spends at least three months to prepare their horses for the festival.
According to a centuries-old tradition, people raced horses before worshipping gods with offerings of food and flowers under a tree located at Tundikhel ground.