BSS, Chittagong :
The Eid-ul-Azha, the second largest religious festival of the Muslims, was celebrated in the port city as elsewhere in the district with the spirit of sacrifice and total surrender to Almighty Allah in line with the inherent teachings of the holy occasion on Monday.
Nearly 248 Eid congregations at mosques and selected open spaces, including three big ones at M A Aziz Stadium and Jamiatul Falah Mosque (two successively), were held in the city under the auspices of Chittagong City Corporation (CCC) and Chittagong Central Eid Jamaat Committee (CCEJC).
Chittagong Metropolitan and district police sources said Eid-ul-Azha Jamaats in the city and district were held peacefully.
Of the biggest three, two Eid congregations were held on the Jamiatul Falah Mosque premises successively at 7.45 am and 8.15 am while rest was held at M.A. Aziz Stadium at 8 a.m. Senior imam of the Jamiatul Falah complex Mosque Abu Bakar Siddiqui conducted the Eid jamaat.
Chittagong city Mayor M Monzurul Alam, Nurul Islam BSc, Mir Mohammad Nasiruddin, former mayor Mahmudul Islam Chowdhury and a large number of dignitaries performed Eid prayers on the Jamiatul Falah Mosque premises.
Imams and religious leaders while conducting munajats at the end of prayers sought divine blessings to Almighty Allah for continued peace, progress and stability of the country as well as the Muslim Ummah.
The authority had taken adequate security measures by deploying RAB, Police and Ansars at various strategic points in the city to keep a vigil on law and order during, before and after Eid.
After the prayers, the Muslims were seen offering sacrificial animals by slaughtering those in the name of Allah in commemoration of the supreme sacrifice made by Hazrat Ibrahim (AS).
Other major Eid congregations were held at Andarkilla Shahi Jame Mosque, Laldhighi Maidan, Parade Maidan, Masjeed-e-Baitus Sharf at Kadamtali, Pologround Railway Public High School Maidan, Shah Amanat Shah ®Dargah Maidan, Metropolitan Police Lines Maidan, Agrabad Jamboree Field, and Baizeed Bostami ® Dargah Mosque in between 8 am and 8.30 am.
Authorities concerned served improved diets among the inmates of hospitals, jails, orphanages, and in youth and juvenile centers run by social welfare departments.
CCC sources said nearly 3000 contingency staffs have been engaged throughout the city with an adequate number of waste-disposing vehicles to remove the garbage and waste of the sacrificial animals.
According to reports reaching here from 14 upazilas under the district, the people in the rural areas also celebrated the festival with enthusiasm.
