Capital braces up for Durga Puja countdown

--CCTVs to be installed to keep vigil on the mischief-mongers

Jharpada Durga Puja Pandal

BHUBANESWAR: Mahalaya welcomed the goddess Durga for the season of festival to bring bountiful yield and happiness to the home. Durga puja is also known as Navratri puja which says the worshipping of goddess Durga for nine days. Like Kolkata, Gujarat and Cuttack; the capital city is also geared up for Durga Puja.

Some Puja Mandaps in the city have started the rituals of Navaratri puja formally from Mahalaya night, but most of the puja committees would formally open the puja pandals from Saturday, which is also known as sixth day of the second half of Ashwin month of the Odia year. The artisans and pandal designers are all set to give finishing touch to the inner designs of the pandals and colour painting on the idols.

According to the residents of the city, the puja committees of Rasulgarh, Nayapalli, Jharpada and Saheed Nagar in the city are organising the puja in a big manner. All four puja committees have spent around Rs 25 lakh each to make the puja more attractive than others. The Mina Bazaar, Break Dance, Ram Doli and other entertainment facilities would be available near the puja pandals. Apart from these, the city vendors and shop owners would open their food stalls, shops and toy stores for children to make their business.

The cultural institutions and social clubs, who were organising the puja in a planned way to observe it with great pomp and splendour, attracted the attention of the city devotees to their puja mandaps.

The attraction of the puja is their respective pandals draped in different colours and in different themes, ideas and innovative arts and designs. According to Rasulgarh Durga Puja Committee member Sridhar Baliarsingh, they have hired artists from Medinipur district and Kolkata city of West Bengal for the design of their puja pandal like a temple carved from a mountain which would be very special from others. The pandal is made up of different colored and designed thermocol with paper kartoons, while the idol is of 12 feet height with side god and goddesses.

Baliarsingh said the Rasulgarh Durga puja pandal would be designed in a very natural way by using the paddy saplings on the pandal and archway. Describing the theme of their pandal and archway design, he said the devotees can see a temple carved on the mountain upon which an artificial water fountain would be set on god Ishwar’s idol on that temple. “This year, the puja will be something different in the 20-year puja history of the committee,” said Baliarsingh.

According to Saheed Nagar Durga Puja Committee secretary Narayan Mohaptra, they have designed the inner side of the pandals by using fruit pods. The have designed the archway of the puja pandal like a Boita (ship). They all set to open the puja pandal on Saturday as their artisans and art designers are giving final touch to their preparations.

Mohapatra said they would organise ‘Ravanpodi’ behind the puja pandal on Wednesday, the day of Desshera. “For the first time, their puja committee had introduced Ravanpodi in 1985 in the history of Durga puja in the city,” he claimed. For security purposes, eight CCTV cameras would be installed at the puja site to keep vigil on the devotees and mischief mongers. Besides, 12 SPOs and 25 volunteers would be engaged to control the crowd, he informed.

Among all, the Nayapalli Durga Puja Committee is different from others by introducing an ambulance for the poor people on the occasion of Durga puja which is a new concept, said Committee president Pabitra Mohan Behera to The Pioneer. The ambulance service would be inaugurated by the Governor on the day of the Dusshera, he added. The committee has already finished all the works of the pandals, gigantic idols and archway. The lighting, sound section, Ramayan drama and decoration would attract the devotees more, said a local resident Binayak.

The Jharpada Durga Puja pandal and archway is very big comparing to others. The art work done by the designers on the archway is attracting the people of the city, said a person from Rajmahal Bulu Sahu. Apart from these, the puja pandals of Bomikhal, Unit-4, Unit-1, Badagada, Patia, Ganganagar, Palasuni, Chakeisani, BDA, Gadakana and one of the oldest Station Bazaar puja Mandap are the main attraction of the devotees.

The Puja bazaar is all set to make a good business in this session. The garment showrooms, wholesale markets also hit the market of the city, the commercial nerve centre as well as an inter-state business center of the State. City administration, Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) along with the Commissionerate Police is ready for the six-day long carnival. For the better sanitation facility, BMC have planned for special arrangement for the devotees.

Traffic is getting thicker gradually in the areas near the puja pandals, so the police administration is planning for a better traffic management during puja. To strengthen the traffic system, 40 more staff would be engaged to control the heavy traffic, said the traffic officials. Around 17 platoon police forces have already deployed in the city from Friday, while 20 platoon police forces on Ravanpodi and 25 platoon police forces would be deployed on the day of immersion (Bhasani) of goddess Durga, Commissionerate Police sources said.

For the Bhasani, special route chart and traffic system would be finalised to control the crowd. The police would keep eye on the robbers, looters and pickpocketers during the puja. The Commissionerate Police has prepared a blueprint to control the crowd and for the smooth observation of puja in the city. CCTV cameras would be installed in the big puja pandals in the city and Special Police Officers along with the police forces would be deployed near the puja pandals to keep eye on the crowd.

The local police would do patrolling with 12 teams of police force during the puja. To keep vigil on sound pollution, the police would examine the decibel limit time to time and to remind the puja committee to finish their daily programmes in time, said the police.   

Durga puja has brought joy and exuberance among the inhabitants of the city once again. They believe that Durga puja not a puja only, but it is the original feeling and experiencing of their old tradition and Sakti-cult of the state from very near.