Devotees throng Pashupatinath on Maha Shivaratri

Kathmandu - Devotees from various places of the country and neighbouring India have thronged Pathupatinath Temple since early Tuesday morning to offer prayers on Maha Shivaratri. 
All four doors of the temple were open at 3:15 for the devotees to pay homage to Lord Shiva, said director of the Pashupati Area Development Trust (PADT) Bhola Sitaula. 
Arrangements have been made for the devotees to enter the main temple from three doors (a door in the south of Pingalasthan, another in the west of Jayabageshwori-Bhuvaneshwori, and the third from Mitrapark-Umakunda-Basuki), he said. 
The devotees are supposed to exit from the same door they have entered, said another PADT official. 
Approximately 1.3 million devotees are estimated on the festival this year, he said.