Data Darbar Urs 2025: Your Guide to the Festivities, Road Closures, and Public Holiday.

If you’re in Lahore tonight, you can feel the unique spiritual energy in the air. The city has officially begun the 982nd annual Urs celebrations for one of the subcontinent’s most revered Sufi saints, Hazrat Data Ganj Bakhsh Ali Hajveri (RA).

For those who may not know, Data Sahib is the reason Lahore is often called “Data Ki Nagri” (The City of Data). He was a saint who journeyed from Afghanistan almost a millennium ago and made Lahore his home. His teachings and noble character drew countless people to Islam, and his book, Kashf-ul-Mahjub, is still considered a cornerstone text on Sufism today.

From today until August 15, his shrine will be the heart of a massive three-day gathering. Thousands of devoted followers from all over Pakistan are expected to attend. The days and nights will be filled with the sounds of Qirat (Quranic recitation), Naat, and soulful Sama (Sufi music). As is tradition, stalls providing free meals (langar) and milk have been set up, while the area around the shrine is buzzing with small shops selling sweets and spiritual keepsakes.

Naturally, an event of this scale requires major security. DIG Operations Faisal Kamran has personally reviewed the safety measures at the shrine’s entry and exit points and has called for security to be even tighter. To manage the crowds, main roads to Data Darbar from areas like Town Hall and Bilal Ganj have been sealed with containers, but they are still open for people on foot and motorcycles.

To honor the event, the Punjab Government has also declared a local public holiday in Lahore on Friday, August 15. This holiday will apply to various city-level departments like the MCL, LDA, and WASA. However, key provincial offices, including the Civil Secretariat, will remain open. The official notification for this has already been sent out.