CM Yogi honours Sharda Sinha at Gomti Chhath gathering
Synopsis
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid tribute to late Padma-awardee folk singer Sharda Sinha at the Chhath Mahaparv gathering on the banks of Lucknow's Gomti River, saying the festival cannot be complete without her memory.
Key Takeaways
CM Yogi Adityanath addressed the Chhath Mahaparv gathering at the Gomti River in Lucknow on 15 November 2026 .
He paid tribute to late folk singer Sharda Sinha , a Padma awardee, calling her memory inseparable from the festival.
Sharda Sinha is credited with popularising Chhath songs in Bhojpuri and Maithili across India and among the global diaspora.
The Gomti River riverfront in Lucknow has served as the official site for major state-led Chhath celebrations under successive UP governments.
The tribute was shared by the Chief Minister's Office of Uttar Pradesh on its official social-media account.
On the banks of the Gomti River — revered as the soul of Lucknow — Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paused a festival celebration to pay tribute to a voice that made the celebration possible for millions. At the Chhath Mahaparv gathering on Sunday, 15 November 2026, the Chief Minister's Office of Uttar Pradesh shared his words of remembrance for the late folk legend Sharda Sinha, saying the festival itself cannot be considered complete without her memory.
Speaking at the riverfront event, CM Yogi Adityanath said: 'Chhath ke geeton ko desh aur duniya tak pahunchane wali swar kokilа swargiya Sharda Sinha ji ke smaran ke bina hum is parv ko poorn nahin kar sakte' — 'We cannot consider this festival complete without remembering the nightingale who carried Chhath songs to the country and the world.' He offered a formal tribute, bowing to the memory of Sharda Sinha, honouring her with the Padma award recognition she earned in life.
The voice behind Chhath's national reach
Sharda Sinha was the definitive voice of Chhath Puja — a Bhojpuri and Maithili folk singer whose recordings of festival songs became the sonic identity of the festival across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and wherever the Indian diaspora gathered at rivers to worship the Sun. Her Padma honour from the Government of India recognised a career that turned regional devotional music into a shared national cultural inheritance. Without her, the Chhath soundscape as most Indians know it simply would not exist.
Gomti's riverfront as a stage for state and soul
Yogi Adityanath has governed Uttar Pradesh since 2017, and his administration has consistently used major festival gatherings at the Gomti to combine public religious participation with the state's promotion of local cultural traditions. The Gomti riverfront in Lucknow, developed over successive governments, serves as both a ceremonial backdrop and a civic statement — the message being that the river, the festival, and the state's heritage are inseparable. Sunday's tribute wove that official cultural strand together with a moment of personal remembrance.
The convergence of Chhath — one of Hinduism's most demanding and visually arresting sun-worship festivals — with an on-site tribute to its most celebrated musical voice gives the moment a weight beyond routine festival optics. For the lakhs of devotees who stood knee-deep in the Gomti at sunrise and sunset, hearing their Chief Minister invoke Sharda Sinha was an acknowledgment that culture, faith, and memory share the same riverbank.
Chhath devotion travels wherever its people go. The fact that CM Yogi chose the festival's most public moment to anchor it to one irreplaceable artist is both a tribute and a statement about which traditions Uttar Pradesh intends to remember — by name, not just by ritual.
Point of View
Not merely a facilitator of events. Naming a Padma-awardee singer by name at a mass festival gathering converts a moment of religious observance into a statement of cultural patronage. For a government that has consistently emphasised UP's Hindu cultural legacy, invoking Sharda Sinha — whose voice transcended caste and regional lines — is a politically astute as well as genuinely felt gesture. It signals that official cultural memory will be curated, not left to chance.
NationPress
15 Nov 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Sharda Sinha and why is she associated with Chhath?
Sharda Sinha was a celebrated Bhojpuri and Maithili folk singer whose recordings of Chhath Puja devotional songs became the definitive musical identity of the festival across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and among the Indian diaspora worldwide. She received a Padma award from the Government of India in recognition of her contributions to Indian folk music.
What did CM Yogi say about Sharda Sinha at Chhath 2026?
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the Chhath festival cannot be considered complete without remembering Sharda Sinha, describing her as the voice that carried Chhath songs to the country and the world. He offered a formal tribute to her memory at the Gomti River gathering in Lucknow.
Where is Chhath Mahaparv celebrated in Lucknow?
In Lucknow, Chhath Puja rituals are primarily observed on the banks of the Gomti River, which is described in official statements as the soul of the city. The UP government has held major public Chhath events at the Gomti riverfront for several years.
What Padma award did Sharda Sinha receive?
Sharda Sinha was honoured with a Padma award by the Government of India for her exceptional contributions to Bhojpuri and Maithili folk music, particularly her role in popularising Chhath festival songs nationally and internationally.
Why does CM Yogi participate in Chhath events?
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has participated in Chhath and other major Hindu festivals as part of a broader policy of official engagement with Uttar Pradesh's cultural and religious traditions since taking office in 2017. His administration has promoted riverfront events as a way to combine public faith observance with state cultural branding.
