The Durga Puja, biggest religious festival of the Hindu community, begins with the incarnation (Bodhon) of the Goddess Durga at temples across the country today (Friday).
Preparations for celebrating the greatest festival of the Hindu community in all the pandals have nearly been completed. In separate messages, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina conveyed greetings to the members of the country’s Hindu community marking the festival.
The five-day festival starts with ‘Bodhon’ of the Goddess Durga today marking Sashthi while the festival will come to an end with the emersion of the idols of the Goddess Durga in the nearby rivers and water bodies across the country on October 11 (Tuesday). The Mahasaptami puja will be held on Saturday (October 8), Mahashtami, Kumari Puja and Sandhi Puja on Sunday (October 9), Mahanabami Puja on Monday (October 10) and Biyoya Dashami on Tuesday (October 11). Centering the festival, devotees and artisans are busy taking last moment preparations and tastefully decorating the temples and pandals across the country.
According to Bangladesh Puja Utjapan Parishad, a total of 29,395 permanent and temporary pandals have been erected across the country including 229 in the capital city this year to celebrate the Durga Puja.
A mood of festivities persists among the devotees irrespective of ages marking the festival while adequate security measures had already been taken in the puja pandals across the country. Throughout the day today to mark the Shashthi, recitation of the verses from the Holy Chandi and blowing of conch shells (Shankha) and beating of dhak- dhols (drums) will be heard in temples and pandals in the city.
Draped in new dresses, a large numbers of devotees irrespective of ages will throng the city pandals, particularly at Dhakeshwari National Temple, and offer prayers before the Goddess Durga seeking divine blessings for peace, prosperity and welfare of the country and its people.Security has been beefed up in the Puja pandals throughout the country including in the capital city with the deployment of additional squads of Ansars, police, RAB and other law enforcers for peaceful celebration of the festival. Apart from offering of prayers before the Goddess, Dhakeshwari National Temple at Lalbag has chalked out other programmes including rendering of devotional songs, distribution of clothes among the poor, distribution of Mohaprosad, Arati completion, voluntary blood donation and bring out a Bijoya Dashami procession in the city from the temple premises.
Preparations have also been completed in the tastefully decorated Puja pandals at Ramkrishna Mission and Math, Ramna Kalimandir O Anandamayee Ashram, Kalabagan, Baradeshwari Kalimata Mandir, Siddheshwari Kalibari, Bholanath Mandir Ashram, Jagannath Hall, Rishipara Gautam Ashram, Gulshan Banani Sarbojonin Puja Parishad, Basabo Balurmath, Bonogram, South Maishundi, Shankhari Bazar, Tanti Bazar, Panitola, Farashganj, North Brook Hall Road, Lalbag and other places in the city.
On the eve of the festival, leaders of Bangladesh Puja Utjapan Parishad, Mohanagar Sarbojonin Puja Committee and Bangladesh Hindu-Bouddha-Christian Oikya Parishad conveyed Puja greetings to the members of all communities of the country.
