Patna: Durga Puja committees plan simple celebrations

PATNA: Navaratra is just around the corner and artists and decorators are busy giving final touches to theme-based pandals in the city. Many of them have, however, decided to celebrate the festival with less pomp amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Since ‘kalash sthapana’ will be performed on October 7, the Puja committees are making last-minute preparations to welcome Goddess Durga with love and devotion.
Sanjiv Prasad Toni, the chairperson of Navyuvak Sangh Shree Durga Puja Samiti Trust, told this reporter on Tuesday that Durga Puja would be a low-key affair like last year.
“Although no idol will be installed at the pandal near Dak Bungalow crossing, the devotees will be able to see Goddess Durga on a digital screen from a distance. None of them will be allowed inside,” Sanjiv said, adding that the structure of the pandal, which would be barricaded, was ready and only finishing touches were left.
Raj Kumar, the convenor of Navyuvak Sangh Puja Samiti, also pointed out that Durga Puja festivities would not be elaborate. He added, “An 18-foot-high pandal has been made on Polytechnic Mor where only 20 visitors will be allowed at a time. Besides, all our members, who will manage the crowd, are fully vaccinated.”
Echoing similar views, Kumar Ritesh, a member of Mithapur-Jakkanpur Durga Puja Samiti, said a simple pandal was being erected where only one idol of Goddess Durga would be installed. All the rituals would be performed in a traditional manner with devotion.
On the contrary, Shri Durga Puja Samiti Navyuvak Sangh has roped in artists to make a 40-foot-high pandal in Defence Colony which looks similar to the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. A member of the committee, Krishna Singh, said, “Idols of Goddess Durga, Saraswati, Lakshmi, and Lord Kartikeya are being prepared.”
He continued, “There will be separate entry and exit points for visitors to whom the pandal will be thrown open on October 11. There will also be sanitisers and face masks for them.”