The indigenous Bote community celebrates Shrawan 1 as the new year and the main festival. The Bote community of Chitwan gathered on Friday on the banks of the Rapti River in Patihani Chitamai and performed a collective puja and also organized a New Year's greetings program 'Lelahar Delahar'. The person who receives the gift is called Lelahar Delahar in the Bote language.

Ramraj Bote of Patihani Ghatgain, Bharatpur Metropolitan City-22 had reached the Rapti banks early in the morning. He is the 'Guruwa' or the main person who performs the puja of the Sankranti Puja. Gharial crocodiles were bustling in the murky river. In a while, men, women, and children of the Bote community who had reached Chitwan and Tanahun Devghat gathered. 'Guruwa' Ramraj first worshipped the water, land, and forest in a ritualistic manner.

Bina Bote from Patihani had gathered the necessary materials for the puja with her friends. The forest's kurilo, bhorla leaves, and thakal had arrived at the puja site. The Bote community's ultimate profession is boating, fishing, and sometimes gold mining by sifting sand from rivers and lakes. Boats were floating in the river. Those boats were also worshipped.

There were small models of boats, fish tanks, fishing nets, a trough used for sifting gold in the sand, a sand scoop, and a chinauta at the puja site. 'Bote people live either in the river or in the forest. If you worship water during the monsoon season, there will be no danger. If you worship the forest when it is green, it is believed that nature will protect us,' said Bina Bote.

The program was organized by the Nepal Bote Society District Working Committee, Chitwan. ‘Saune Sankranti is the main festival in our own festivals. It is a day to worship nature and eat sweets. We have started to worship collectively and exchange good wishes because it is necessary for the new generation to continue this,’ said Bishwa Bote, acting president of Nepal Bote Society, Chitwan.