Ehsanul Haque Jasim :Pahela Baishakh, the first day of Bangla New Year 1423, was celebrated across the country with much enthusiasm and traditional gaiety on Thursday amid tight security following last year’s women harassment on Dhaka University campus.Different socio-cultural organisations, educational institutions and government offices organised programmes, including musical soirees, colorful marches and street side Baishakhi fairs in city as elsewhere across the country to welcome the Bangla New Year with new hopes and aspirations for a better, peaceful year. Festivities began with the break of dawn when artistes of major cultural group Chhayanaut welcomed the day with Tagore’s song ‘Esho hey Baishakh, esho, esho’ under the banyan tree at the Ramna Park in the capital.This year, the nation celebratedPahela Baishakh peacefully with the help of the police and other law enforcing agencies. No untoward incident was reported during the celebration from anywhere in the country. Law enforcers had taken tight security measures in and around all the venues for smooth celebration of Pahela Baishakh programmes. The law enforcers also remained alert to thwart any untoward situation.The authorities this year also banned masks, commonly worn during the New Year parades, as part of increased security.The people, especially the youths, came out on the roads at the daybreak wearing traditional dresses to celebrate the day. Men wearing traditional panjabi-pyjama, women attired in saris with red borders, and children in colourful dresses joined the open concerts and the Mongol Shovajatra, braving the hot weather and carrying masks of animals and colourful garlands.The Institute of Fine Arts of Dhaka University took out ‘Mongol Shovajatra (procession of good wishes)’ from in front of the institute in the morning as part of the carnival. The colourful procession with decorative replicas of animals as well as elements of Bengali culture ended at the DU campus after parading Karwan Bazar through Shahbagh.Many people partook in ‘Panta Bhat (water socked rice)’ with fried Hilsa at home, restaurants and fairs following the rich tradition of the Bangla culture. The day was a public holiday. Traders and shopkeepers opened ‘Halkhata’ (new book of accounts) and entertain customers and visitors with sweets on the first day of the New Year as part of the tradition and culture.To mark the year, special diet was served at all the jails, hospitals and orphanage centres. All museums were opened on the day for visiting those without tickets.This year, there were some restrictions of on the outdoor celebrations of Pahela Baishakh imposed by the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP). The DMP directed the people not to enter Dhaka University campus, Ramna Park and Suhrawardy Udyan after 4:00pm, as visitors had to leave the two venues by 5:00pm.Police detained four revellers attempting to hold a banned ‘rainbow rally’. Police said that they held the four young at Dhaka University who sought to hold the rally in support of gay rights, which had been denied permission.
