People throng temples, parks, zoo on New Year’s Day

Braving the cold and despite a nationwide strike, Lucknowites set out of their houses in large numbers on the first day of the year on Monday. Families and groups of friends were seen hanging out at parks, temples and tourist locations in the city.

Kicking off the year with prayers

Thousands thronged temples, gurudwaras, churches and other religious places to seek divine blessings. The biggest crowd was seen at Hanuman temples on the University Road and Hazratganj, the Mankameshwar temple and the Kali Bari temple in Ghasiyari Mandi. The adhyaksha of Ramakrishna Math, Swami Muktinathananda, spoke about the significance of Kalpataru Utsav with devotees following which prasad and calendars were distributed. At the Kali Bari temple, devotees offered pushpanjali, said head purohit Amit Goswami.

Lucknow Zoo hosts 17k visitors in a day

The Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden also witnessed a downpour of visitors--17,507 to be precise. The previous day, December 31, the zoo saw a footfall of 10,221 visitors, which prompted the authorities to keep the zoo open for visitors on Monday as well, said a press statement from the zoo. The zoo usually remains closed on Mondays.

Also, over five children got lost in the crowd before being reunited with their parents, the zoo said. Attractions like the toy trains and selfie points also drew crowd in great numbers.

Families, friends preferred parks

Families, couples and friends’ groups were seen at parks wrapped in their winter best. Janeshwar Mishra saw throngs of crowds since the morning, with people lounging on steps, and taking leisurely walks with their children hoisted up on their shoulders. Many who visited the Ambedkar Park eventually trickled into the Janeshwar Mishra Park. Hanumant Dham was also one of the preferred choices in the city for spending New Year’s Day in an open space, under the winter sun, sans the interruption of traffic.