By A Staff Reporter, Kathmandu, Feb. 23:  Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) and Guthi Sansthan Sunday bade farewell to Sadhus and babas who had come during Mahashivatatri before they returned to their own places.

Both organisations had bid farewell to them by providing them certain amount of money.

Every year, hundreds of saints, sadhus and babas from various parts of the county and India visit the Pashupatinath Temple during Shivaratri and they stayed in various locations in and around the temple area.  

Arjun Prasad Bastola, coordinator of Sadhu, Saints and Religious Sub-Committee of the PADT, informed that more than 5,000 Sadhus, Saints and Babas were present at the farewell ceremony today.

Guthi Sansthan and PADT jointly provided them Rs. 200 to Rs. 2,000 as per their grades.

To organise the farewell ceremony, the PADT and Guthi Sansthan had allocated Rs. 1.1 million of cost respectively, he said.

The PADT and Guthi Sansthan both provided them food, firewood and blankets to them some days before and after of Shivaratri.   

According to Guthi Sansthan, Babas are ranked into five grades-Lalmohariya, Mahantha or Mathadhis, Bhesdhari, Sanyasi and Digambara.