COVID-19 impact: Toned-down Durga Puja celebrations in Bengal's Bankura

The pandemic has affected the preparations for West Bengal's biggest festival Durga puja in Bankura. The residents of Mejia feel hopeless as they fear that there will be less crowd to witness the unique ritual of Durga Puja.

Bankura: With Bengal reeling under the coronavirus pandemic, there will be no grand Durga Puja celebrations in many parts of the state. 'Tonned down' durga puja celebrations will be done in the state and marquee will be put up as the pandemic has failed to dampen the spirit of the organisers.

The residents of Mejia in Bankura are left in the lurch as they fear no one would turn up to see their special custom during the festival. Villagers of the place celebrate Durga Puja in a unique way in which the Goddess Durga is worshipped after she is tied with chains and an iron rod is kept at the rear of the idol. Since ages, people from far-off distant places used to visit the place to see the special ritual which attracts a large number of devotees.

The custom was started in 1758 by Zamindar Govinda Pal who had a good reputation in the area. Pal had built a temple with spacious temples. These rooms were used at the time of Durga Puja for celebrations. An entry gate, known as Nahabatkhana, was also constructed to give the temple a distinctive look.

However, later Pal died and his son Kunjbihari Pal and his descendants continued the Durga Puja celebrations. No animal sacrifice is done at the time of the festival and Maskalai (dal) is offered to the devotees.

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But the people of Bankura are feeling helpless as there won't be a huge crowd this year for the Durga Puja celebrations.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday doubled the annual financial assistance to Durga Puja organisers across the state to Rs 50,000. She also announced a 50 per cent waiver in charges for consumption of electricity by the Puja Committees in the state, who consume substantial power for the grand
illumination during the five-day festival. Around 34,437 and 2,509 Pujas are organised under the jurisdiction of West Bengal police and Kolkata Police respectively, she said.
The week-long festivities will begin on October 23. Announcing a slew of doles for the Puja committees in the state, Banerjee slammed BJP for spreading rumours about the festival. "Few people want to disturb the peace and flare up communal tensions in the state".

The Carnival, a brainchild of Banerjee, is being organized by the West Bengal government for the last few years at the sprawling Red Road where the award-winning Durga Puja committees showcase their idols for hordes of spectators.

With PTI inputs