Durga Puja To Be Held at 237 Mandaps in Dhaka

The biggest festival of the followers of the Sanatana Dharma, Durga Puja, will start on the weekend. The puja will start on 11th October through Mahasasthi and will end on 15th October through Bijaya Dashmi.

This time before the Durga Puja, as the covid-19 situation is normal, the devotees are thinking of celebrating on a large scale like before. However, although the expectations for the puja celebrations have increased, the overall preparation time is less. That is why there has been excessive busyness. In Dhaka, there is no time for puja celebration committees, organizations and idol artists to rest.

In the old Dhaka where most pujas are celebrated, it is seen that in Shankharibazar, Tantibazar, Laxmibazar, Sutrapur, Shyambazar, Paridas Road, Kaltabazar, Murgitola, Madanmohan Das Lane, Goarnagar, Banglabazar zamindarbari, gendaria, the puja preparation is going on. The construction work of stage, pandal and arch has started in different puja mandapas, big and small. As it is not fully prepared, construction materials have been placed next to the mandapa. Besides, the organizers were seen rushing.

Meanwhile, there is no end to the busyness of idol artists for different puja mandapas. The work of making their idols usually starts three months before the puja. But this time a month before the puja, the demand for idols has suddenly increased as the situation in coronavirus has returned to normal. So, the artists are working day and night.

Sukumar Chakraborty, a priest from Shankharibazar, said a total of 100 items were needed for the puja. These materials are procured from Shankharibazar and Tantibazar. Hindus from different parts of the country also procure these materials from Shankharibazar.

It is seen that in the Shankharibazar area, there are small stalls on the side of the road and in the alleys to sell these items used in Durga Puja. People from different parts of the country including Dhaka are buying materials there.

According to various local puja celebration organizations in Old Dhaka, this time in Old Dhaka, Nab Kallol, Tantibazar Puja Committee, Sri Sri Shiva Mandir, Udiyaman Surya Sangha, Panitola Panchayat, Pratidndvi, Sanghamitra, Sri Sri Radha Madhab Jiu Dev Mandir, Navdurga, Nabbagi , Durgabari, Natun Kundi, Buri Bangali, Ramgant Gali, Surya Tara, Ramakrishna Mission and Goalnagar Panchayat Committee among others.

Regarding the overall puja celebrations in the capital, Rajat Kumar Sur, a member of the Mahanagar Sarvajanin Puja Committee, said that this time Durga Puja will be celebrated in a total of 236 mandapas in Dhaka metropolis in compliance with the health rules. Of these, Sutrapur police station has the highest number of 25 mandapas, followed by Kotwali police station with 21, Wari with 16, Gandaria with 14, Hazaribagh with 13, Turag with 12, Badda with 10, Banani with 9, Mohammadpur with 9, Darussalam and Gabtali with 8, Demra with 8 and 6 in Tejgaon. Will be celebrated.

“We didn’t have much time to prepare before the puja,” he added. However, we are working to ensure that we can worship in an orderly manner.