Ker puja

{{Use Indian English|date=December 2018}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}

Ker puja is a festival held in Tripura, India. Performance of the puja, which is typically held in August,{{cite web|url=http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/detailsnew.asp?id=aug0210/oth04 |title=Ker puja |publisher=Assam Tribune |accessdate=26 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304050736/http://www.assamtribune.com/scripts/detailsnew.asp?id=aug0210%2Foth04 |archivedate= 4 March 2016 }} benefits the people and the state.{{cite book|last=Barthakur|first=Dilip Ranjan|title=The Music And Musical Instruments Of North Eastern India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oP4vH-4oSEcC&pg=PA57|accessdate=28 April 2013|year=2003|publisher=Mittal Publications|isbn=978-81-7099-881-5|pages=57–}} The celebration occurs two weeks after the Kharchi Puja to honor Ker, the guardian deity of Vastu Devata. It includes offerings, sacrifices, and a prescribed boundary which both safeguards people from calamities and saves them from external aggression.{{cite book|last=Sharma|first=A. P.|title=Famous Festivals of India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VRgD7cga54EC&pg=PT188|accessdate=28 April 2013|date=8 May 2010|publisher=Pinnacle Technology|isbn=978-1-61820-288-8|pages=188–}}

The puja was initiated by the Tripura rajas. Participation in the puja is required for the Halam tribe. For 2.5 days during the festival, entrances to the capital are closed, and participants, including the reigning sovereign, are not allowed to wear shoes, light a fire, dance, or sing.

Ker Puja fell on 15 July in 2017.{{cite web |url=http://tripura.gov.in/holiday/2017 |title=Public Holidays for the year 2017 {{!}} Tripura State Portal |website=tripura.gov.in |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106073713/http://tripura.gov.in/holiday/2017 |archive-date=2017-01-06}}