Today, the Magar community in hilly districts including Palpa is celebrating the 'Maghe Sakrati' festival. The Magar community celebrates Maghe Sakrati (Magh 1) as the new year, Minam Lhes.

This year, the new year of 5019 BS will be celebrated, said Sher Bahadur Somai, president of Nepal Magar Association, Palpa. He said that the Magars have a tradition of worshipping their ancestors on Maghe Sakrati and bringing all kinds of food to the courtyard to worship them.

On the occasion of Maghe Sakrati, the Magars search for tubers, yams, sugarcane, gedagudi, and dhungsut from their homes and forests and cook them. The Magar community has a tradition of cooking bara or batuk, selling roti, cutting gedagudi chokhya or bangur and inviting all relatives to eat them.

It was a tradition for those who had previously gone abroad to return home to celebrate Maghe Sakrati, inviting their sons-in-law and nephews to eat them. Shanti Jhedi Thapa, the outgoing president of Nepal Magar Association, said that the tradition of cooking and eating sweet dishes and dancing and singing still exists in the Magar community of Palpa.

The main festival of the Magar community, Maghe Sakrati, has also seen increased activity in the Magar settlements. She said that Maghe Sankranti is the biggest festival in the Magar settlements. According to Gam Bahadur Thapa Magar of Tansen Municipality-6, a leader of the Magar community, the Magars have been celebrating the Maghe Sankranti festival for centuries.

According to him, on the day of Maghe Sakrati, the Magars also have a tradition of offering tarpan to their ancestors. Some people have a tradition of performing Shraddha on this day. On Maghe Sakrati, most people invite their daughters and feed them. They also enjoy various dances and songs. There is a tradition of dancing and singing along with old art and culture. Some of the Magar community prepare for the Maghe Sakrati festival for 15 days.

In Magar villages, firewood is collected from the forest. They shop in the market, collect sal leaves to make duna-tapari, and grind them to make various dishes. Tej Bahadur Gharti Magar of Kaseni, Mathagadhi-3, said that in Magar villages, it is customary to slaughter pigs, chickens, goats, fish and other animals. Magar culture has a tradition of making and eating art, costumes, lifestyle and food. He said that there is a tradition of dancing dances such as Jhamre, Kaura, Thulo Nach, Ghatu. In some houses, even those who do not come during Dashain and Tihar come during this time.