Staff Reporter :The holy Eid-ul-Fitr, the biggest religious festival of the Muslims, will be celebrated across the country on Saturday if the moon of Shawal month is sighted today (Friday).The members of the National Moon Sighting Committee will sit in a meeting this evening at the Islamic Foundation office to review the information about the Shawal moon sighting. The holy Eid will be celebrated either on Saturday or Sunday amid religious fervour and enthusiasm after a month-long fasting. All preparations for holding the Eid congregations and celebrations have been completed all over the country and capital Dhaka and Sholakia in Kishoreganj district. On Thursday, braving all sort of odds thousands of people left Dhaka for their respective villages to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with their kindred. The largest Eid congregation will be held at Sholakia Eidgah in Kishoreganj district. Lakhs of devotees will offer prayers there seeking divine blessings, peace and progress of the country. In the capital, the main Eid congregation will be held at the National Eidgah on the High Court premises at 8:30am. Khatib of the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque Prof Maulana M Salahuddin will lead the prayer. President Abdul Hamid is expected to offer the Eid prayers there.Five Eid jamaats will be held at the Baitul Mukarram National Mosque at 7 am, 8 am, 9 am, 10 am and 11 am.National Eidgah has been made ready to hold the main Jamaat of Eid-ul-Fitr. Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) has completed all necessary preparations.Like the past year, separate arrangements have been made at the National Eidgah for woman devotees. Bamboo canopy has already been erected on the ground with appropriate number of fans and lights. Around 2, 58,000 square feet areas have been prepared for holding the Eid Jamaat this time.Mats will be rolled out on the ground once the Shawal moon is sighted, according to Tanvir Ahmed, Executive Engineer DSCC.In Kishorganj, all necessary preparations have almost been completed to hold the country’s largest Eid congregation at Sholakia Eidgah in the district as done in the past.The Muslims from India and Pakistan have also started arriving in the district town 2-3 days ahead of the Eid to attend the congregation.Chairman of Islahul Muslimeen Council and Secretary General of Jama’at-e-Ulama Maulana Md Fariduddin Masud is scheduled to lead the Eid Jamaat this year.Two special trains will operate on Bhairab-Kishoreganj and Kishoreganj-Mymensingh lines to facilitate the movement of Sholakia-bound devotees.The national flag will be hoisted atop government and non-government office buildings on the day. The main city streets and road islands will be decorated with the national flags and banners inscribed with ‘Eid Mubarak’ in Bangla and Arabic.National dailies will bring out supplements on the occasion. The state-owned television and private channels will telecast special programmes on the occasion.Special diet will be served in hospitals, jails, government child families, Chotomoni Nibash, centres for persons with disabilities, shelter homes, orphanages, Vagrant Welfare and Destitute Welfare centres.Eid, marking the completion of a month-long daytime fasting, will also be celebrated in Bangladesh missions abroad.Discussion, seminar, friendly football matches, cultural programmes, Eid reunion of children, and essay writing competition will also feature the occasion.President Abul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh Nationalist Party Chairperson Khaleda Zia and Leader of the opposition in Parliament Begum Raushan Ershad issued separate messages greeting the people on the very auspicious occasion.Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will exchange greetings with people from all walks of life, including judges and foreign diplomats, at her official Ganobhaban residence on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr.Sheikh Hasina, also the Awami League chief, will first exchange Eid greetings with her party leaders and activists as well as the people of all strata from 9.30 am to 11 am at Ganobhaban.Later, the Prime Minister will exchange Eid greetings with judges and foreign diplomats at the same venue.
