<span style="color: #222222;">Today, lakhs of people gathered at Basantapur Durbar Square to celebrate Holi in Kathmandu this morning. The festival is observed in the hilly and mountainous districts today while it will be celebrated in the Tarai-Madhes districts tomorrow. The Holi festival indicates the beginning of spring in Nepal. The Holi festival is celebrated for two days. The Holi festival is Fagu Purnima. Nepalese celebrate Holi in the Falgun month (February-March) i.e. the 11th month of the Nepali calendar on the day of the full moon. Fagu Purnima is a festival celebrated by Hindus of Nepal hailing the arrival of the Spring season. The festival is all about colours, love, joy, and excitement. A ritualistic wooden pole with tufts of colourful strips of cloth known as 'chir' on its top end that was installed in the Basantapur Durbar Square a week back heralding the start of the Phagu (Holi) festival was pulled down tonight and was burnt. This tradition symbolises the end of Holika. The ashes of the chir are considered talismans, and people scramble to get hold of the ashes.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"><br />'' Today hordes of tourists from across the world came to Basantapur Durbar Square to witness the Holi celebration at the historic UNESCO World Heritage site.</span><br />'' <span style="color: #222222;"><br />'' Nepal Police has said 27 thousand police personnel have been mobilised throughout the country to maintain law and order during the Holi festival this year. This number is apart from that personnel mobilised for regular peacekeeping.<br />''<br />''According to Nepal police, no untoward incidents were reported in the course of the festival throughout the country so far today. Security has been beefed up in the big cities across the country, including in Kathmandu. </span><br />