Jaipur bids farewell to Goddess Durga as four-day festival concludes

Jaipur: The city bid farewell to Goddess Durga on Sunday morning as the four-day-long Durga Puja, which started on Thursday, came to an end with Vijaya Dashami. All Durga Puja committees in Jaipur and other parts of Rajasthan immersed the idols by Sunday afternoon.
Owing to an unusual puja calendar this year, the organisers of Durga pujas in Jaipur were split over the concluding time of the festival.While the celebrations at Durga Bari concluded on Saturday evening, a few puja committees observed Dashami rituals on Saturday and immersed the idols on Sunday. Many puja committees observed Dashami on Sunday morning itself.
"Most rituals related to Dashami were held on Sunday morning at our pandal. This is because our priest informed us that Saturday is not a good day to bid goodbye to the Goddess," said Tarun Paul from Jhotwara Durga Puja Committee.
Most pandals in the city observed Sindur Khela since early Sunday, with ladies donning white and red sarees and playing with vermilion. They offered sweets and sindur to Ma Durga and her children along with the lion and all the other vahanas, and even Mahisasura.
"What started with bodhon on Shasthi (the sixth day) got over with the bisarjan on Sunday. It signified that Ma Durga went back to her in-laws' house after spending four days at her parental home. Now we have to wait for a year to welcome her on the earth again," said Avik Chakraborty, the priest at a Durga Puja committee in the city.