- The Halda festival celebrations began in the Gahar and Tinan valleys of Lahaul and Spiti district.
- To celebrate the festival, villagers cut thin cedar branches into pieces and tie them into bundles to make a torch called ‘halda’.
- The torch is lit at a house where villagers gather to perform various rituals, besides singing and dancing.
- The aim of the festival is to appease local deities, seek better crop yield and ward off evil spirits.
- The Halda festival is similar to Diwali and starts on a full moon day.
It is dedicated to Shishkar Apa, who is believed to be the goddess of wealth in the Lamaistic pantheon