Buddhist architecture of Thailand comes to Capital

BHUBANESWAR: This Durga Puja, revelers in the Capital City will witness the beauty of Thailand’s Buddhist temple at Saheed Nagar. The front gate of the Puja pandal is a replica of a Buddhist temple in Thailand. Designed by at least 40 artisans from West Bengal, the gate is 70 feet high and 120 feet wide.

Taking a leaf out of the Durga Puja pandals in Cuttack, Saheed Nagar Puja Committee has constructed a 18 feet high silver medha (backdrop). While the medha was installed for the first time during the last Puja, this year the committee has added silver ornaments of 40 kg to dress up the Goddess.

The 12 feet idol at the pandal has been crafted by a Cuttack-based artisan, Lakhmidhar Rana while the silver medha has also been designed by a native of Cuttack. According to the committee members, about Rs 35 lakh has been spent on the decoration.A bhajan samaroh has been arranged inside the pandal from 7 pm to 11 pm from Monday.

On the other hand, as part of an initiative to maintain cleanliness, the committee members have planned to fix several placards near the pandal with a message urging the visitors to keep the surroundings clean. In a bid to keep the festivities pollution free, the committee will not burn the effigy of Ravan. Instead, it will organise a play titled ‘Daitya Natya’.

On the security front, the puja pandal will also be equipped with 20 fire extinguishers and equal number of CCTV cameras will be installed in and around the pandal to keep an eye on anti-social elements.

Besides, the Commissionerate Police personnel, 50 special police officers (SPO), 50 volunteers of the committee, including women volunteers and a private security firm’s women personnel will be deployed in and around the pandal.