Durga Idols Immersed amidst Dance and Religious Chants
Patna: Oct. 22, 2007
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Durga Idols Immersed
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Photo by Shashi Uttam |
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Hundreds of Devotees under the banner of various Puja committees in Patna on Monday, amidst huge processions, immersed the statue of Goddess Durga in the Ganga thus bringing an end to the 10-day festivity that had the entire city gripped in Dussehra festival.
Heavy crowd was seen at all ghats, particularly the historical Collectorate Ghat where the line to immerse the statue stretched all the way back to the Regent Cinema as thousands of onlookers stood by the side of the road cheering the procession while enjoying the enthusiasm of the participants.
The rush to immersion began as early as 4 in the morning when organizers from Bailey Road, Boring Road, Rajendra Nagar, Kankarbagh, and other areas proceeded towards the Ganga to avoid the late afternoon rush.
Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, along with other Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders and family members also led the procession to the Collectorate Ghat for the immersion of Durga statue from their household.
In Bengali Akhara, well-known for its lavish puja and insistence on strict puja-related rules for last several decades, devotees celebrated the event by putting colored powder at each others' faces and participated in dance that kept people of all ages engrossed in the moment for hours.
The day, however, was not without some unfortunate incidents.
Members of rival puja committees in Dujra and Buddha Colony clashed with each other with hockey sticks and other make-shift weapons leaving at least a dozen persons injured.
Four persons were taken into custody for trying to disturb peace and incite riot in Patna, the police said.
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