Fish and Puja, a treat for devotees in Cuttack

CUTTACK: Apart from colourful pandals and crowds of revellers, Durga Puja in Cuttack city is also famous for offerings (bhoga or prasad) to the goddess on the five days of the festival. Most puja committees set aside a budget of Rs 2-Rs 4 lakh for the mouth-watering delicacies the most popular of which is the ‘fish bhoga’.

The non-vegetarian offering is in huge demand during the festival and the Chandni Chowk and Alisha Bazaar puja committees offer quintals of it to the goddess on Navami. The tradition of offering ‘fish bhoga’ as part of Navami at the two pandals is more than 200 years old. However, devotees had been deprived of the delicacy for the last two years. This year, people are once again looking forward to the bhoga on Navami. 

“Offering fish to Devi Durga during Navami rituals and distribution of the bhoga among the locals has been a tradition of our puja committee,” said secretary of Chandni Chowk Puja Committee Sushant Kumar Pani. The committee took over the responsibility of organising Durga Puja in the locality from the Darpani royal family in the 1940s. The tradition of offering fish as bhoga is believed to have started with the inception of Durga Puja in the locality in 1817. 

“This year we are hoping to offer fish curry made of 5 quintal of fish and vegetable as bhoga,” said Pani adding the offering would be distributed free of cost among  locals, who had donated to organise the puja on Tuesday evening. 

Similarly, the tradition of fish bhoga has been in vogue at Alisha Bazaar pandal since the local ‘sahi murabis’ took over the responsibility of organising Durga Puja from the local zamindar family in 1885.
Going by the tradition, the puja committee sends the Goddess’ vermilion and bhoga used in the Astami rituals to some fishermen in and around the city who use the items to mark the holy beginning of their fishing season and donate fish for the Navami rituals. The fish cooked with rice and vegetables by the puja committee is called ‘machha jantal’. 

This year, the committee will make ‘machha jantal’ by using 4 quintal fish which will be distributed at four points in Alisha Bazaar to avoid rush, informed committee advisor Badri Naryan Singh. The committee will also sell ‘machha jantal’ to people. While the cost of an earthen pot filled jantal handi is Rs 200, the same costs Rs 100 in an earthen ‘sara’, he added.