News Analysis India

Tag: Durga Puja

  • BJP opposes use of shoes to ‘decorate’ Durga puja pandal, seeks Mamata government’s intervention

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The BJP on Saturday objected to the use of shoes for “decorating” a Durga puja pandal here, alleging that it would hurt religious sentiments of people.

    Organisers of the puja pandal in Dumdum, however, rejected the assertion and said that the shoe installation on the sidewalk leading to the marquee depicts farmers’ movement in the country, and the Durga idol, set up at a considerable distance from it, is surrounded by paddy stacks.

    Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari said in a tweet on Saturday that the organisers have committed a “heinous act” by adorning the pandal wall with shoes, and urged the chief secretary and home secretary to look into the matter.

    “A Durga Puja pandal in Dumdum Park has been decorated with shoes. This heinous act of insulting Maa Durga in the name of ‘Artistic liberty’ won’t be tolerated. I urge the Chief & Home Secretary @egiye_bangla to intervene and compel the organizers to remove the shoes before Shashti,” he added.

    Echoing him, former Meghalaya governor and veteran BJP leader Tathagata Roy told reporters that “everything cannot be tolerated in the name of artistic freedom. This is a grave insult to goddess Durga and hurts our religious sentiment”.

    An office-bearer of Dumdum Park Bharat Chakra puja committee, on his part, clarified that the shoe installation was at a distance from the pandal.

    “Our theme, this year, is farmers’ agitation. As part of the theme, the path leading to the pandal has shoe installations to symbolise a scene after a police lathicharge on agitating farmers, which forced them to run helter skelter. Such scenes were witnessed recently.”

    “Inside the marquee, Devi Durga and her progeny are surrounded by paddy stacks,” he added.

  • CM Mamata inaugurates big-ticket Durga puja pandals, asks people to abide by Covid protocols

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated several Durga Puja pandals in the city for the third consecutive day on Friday and urged people to maintain COVID-19 protocols during the festive season.

    She chanted shlokas invoking the deity at Samajsebi Sangha Puja pandal in Ballygunje area, shortly after the inauguration.

    “Please follow all COVID guidelines, wear masks while moving around pandals,” Banerjee requested one and all.

    Later, she proceeded to ring up the curtain on other big-ticket pandals such as Ekdalia Sporting, Singhi Park, Falguni Sangha and Ballygunje Cultural.

    The CM had on Wednesday, on the occasion of Mahalaya, inaugurated Naktala Udayan Sangha in south Kolkata among other pandals.

  • Calcutta HC allows ‘Sindur Khela’, ‘Arati’, ‘Anjali’ in Durga Puja pandals

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The Calcutta High Court on Thursday modified earlier its orders restricting entry of visitors in Durga Puja pandals in view of improvement in COVID-19 situation and permitted all activities and rituals like ‘Anjali’, ‘Arati’, ‘Sindur Khela’ inside the marquees.

    The court made it clear that the relaxation will be subject to the maximum number of persons, which is allowed inside a puja pandal, and compliance with other conditions such as double vaccination and wearing of masks.

    Modifying earlier orders of the high court, a division bench comprising justices IP Mukerji and Aniruddha Roy directed that with the said conditions being followed, “all activities and puja rituals like Anjali, Arati, Sindur Khela, etc., are permitted inside the pandal.”

    The high court had in October 2020 ordered that in case of smaller pujas, a list for people entering the pandal each day of the four-day festival may include up to 20 names, but not more than 15 persons in case of smaller pujas should get access to the pandals at any given point of time.

    It had directed that for the larger pujas, the charts may include up to 60 names, but at no point of time should the number of persons present within the pandals or the covered area be more than 45.

    It had said that the norms for the highest-end pandals would only apply to pujas where the pandals cover an area in excess of 300 square metres, excluding the dais on which the idols are placed.

    In a petition seeking similar curbs for this year also in view of the Covid, the high court had on October 1 this year directed that restrictions imposed last year would apply during this year’s Durga Puja celebrations as well.

    A prayer for review of the order was moved before the court on Thursday.

    The division bench, in its order, said that a “little review” of the directions is necessary with the improvement in the COVID situation and administration of double vaccination to a substantial number of people.

    The bench directed that entry into a pandal will be limited to the maximum number of persons permitted at any point of time, as per the earlier orders of this court.

    “Such entry shall be unrestricted provided each visitor is double vaccinated and wears a mask,” the court directed.

    The bench directed that the compliance of the entry requirement will be checked by the puja organisers at the entrance.

    “Spot verification is to be made by the police. If any Puja organisation is found to be in default, the Puja and all other activities in that pandal may be forthwith cancelled by the police,” the bench directed.

  • COVID, economic slowdown dim lights on Durga Puja in Bengal

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: The COVID-19 pandemic and economic slowdown have dimmed the lights on West Bengal’s biggest festival, Durga Puja, for the second consecutive year as organisers slashed their budgets and scaled down celebrations due to shrunken sponsorship.

    Not just small-budget pujas, even big-ticket Durga Puja committees in Kolkata have curtailed their spending by nearly 30-40 per cent, mainly compromising on marquee decoration, organisers said.

    Some major Durga Puja organisers, however, felt that although the present situation is far from normal, it is better than last year as many sponsors are willing to spend, albeit lesser than previous years.

    College Square Durga Puja Committee spokesperson Bikash Majumder told PTI on Thursday that its budget has been slashed by at least 40 per cent as compared to the 2019 spending of Rs 50 lakh as there are fewer corporate sponsors and also because of a COVID-induced overall downturn in the market.

    “The illumination on the water body next to our marquee will have lesser glitz and frills while the pandal will be open on all sides, enabling the revellers to see the idols from a distance,” he said, adding that the Durga idol height has been shortened to around 12-14 feet.

    “But we can’t stop the festivities altogether as the livelihood of many people depends on our puja,” he said.

    Echoing similar sentiments, a member of Suruchi Sangha, another popular puja that has attracted lakhs of visitors for years, also decided to cut down its budget by around 30-40 per cent.

    “We have curtailed our budget by around 30-40 per cent due to lack of sponsors. We have also decided to spend around 50 per cent of the funds collected by our puja committee towards providing financial assistance to around 10,000 children and their families in our area. The remaining amount will be spent on idol and marquee,” puja committee spokesperson Swarup Biswas said.

    He said the celebrations will be minimalistic due to the paucity of funds.

    Medium and big pujas in the state spend between Rs 12 lakh and Rs 30 crore on theme-based marquees packed with safety arrangements and basic necessities.

    Mohammad Ali Park Durga Puja committee general secretary Surendra Kumar Sharma said that their budget has been slashed to around Rs 12-13 lakh from Rs 60 lakh in the pre-COVID times.

    Organisers have also cut down on promotional activities due to shrunken budgets.

    The Calcutta High Court has ordered that all Durga Puja pandals in the state be made no-entry zones for people, like last year, to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

    Forum for Durgotsab president Kajal Sarkar said that sponsors who have expressed willingness to invest have curtailed the amounts.

    “Donations, subscriptions and retail advertisements cover around 30 per cent of the expenses; while the rest is usually taken care of by corporate funding, which was negligible last year. Although the situation has improved this year, the sponsors have cut down the amount,” he said.

    However, corporate houses said they are excited to participate in Durga Puja this year as the COVID impact has reduced, and it has been long since the firms directly connected with consumers through physical advertising.

    “Enquiries were higher this year but advertisers finally did not proceed very aggressively due to the uncertainty over footfall at pandals. The advertising inventory, which comprises physical advertisements and sponsorships to puja committees, of all major firms in pre-COVID times was a total of Rs 200 crore.”

    “However, this year it has dipped to 50 per cent (Rs 100 crore), and last year, it was 25-30 per cent,” Amit Mitra, a senior official of a multinational advertising firm, told PTI.

    Emami Agrotech said that overall spending could have been higher if the corporate firms and media planners had clarity over the scale of the celebrations.

    “We were apprehensive about the situation, so had to delay our planning. Our spending could have been more if we had clarity on the situation. We are focussing more on digital content, for which we have allocated around 60-70 per cent of our budget,” Emami Agrotech president (marketing) Debabsish Bhattacharya said.

  • COVID: Schools in Bengal may reopen after puja vacation; vaccination made mandatory for dhakis

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday said schools in the state will reopen after the puja vacations, provided the COVID-19 situation does not change for worse.

    She also said that a sanitisation drive will be conducted at the educational institutes before their campuses reopen for physical classes.

    “Schools in Bengal will reopen after the puja (vacations), provided the situation is favourable. If the third wave does not turn out to be dangerous, we will sanitise the school buildings and reopen them. We are keen on restarting schools. We want students to go to schools,” Banerjee told reporters.

    Asserting that the COVID-19 situation in the state is currently “under control”, the chief minister further clarified that if the number of cases spikes, as it did in Maharashtra and Kerala, “I am not sure what decisions would be taken then”.

    Earlier this month, the CM, following a meeting of the Global Advisory Board (GAB), headed by Nobel laureate Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee, had hinted that that the state government is looking into the option of opening schools and colleges on alternate days after the puja vacation.

    Incidentally, another Nobel laureate, Amartya Sen, during a webinar on Sunday, said “there is no instant answer to the debate over opening of school campuses amid the COVID-19 pandemic”.

    Sen further said that children are suffering a lot as schools remain closed but concerns over their health cannot be ignored.

    Educational institutes in Bengal have largely remained shut since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in the country in March last year.

    Meanwhile, large housing complexes of Kolkata are gearing up to organise the Durga Puja this year, albeit in a low-key manner amid the Covid-19 pandemic, making vaccination compulsory for priests, ‘dhakis’ (drummers) and everyone associated with the four-day festival to be held in October.

    Though several housing societies have completed the ‘khuti puja’ – a ritual of worshipping a pole before putting up Durga puja pandals, they may have to alter some plans later as the threat of a possible third wave of the pandemic is there.

    “Priests, dhakis, pandal makers, electricians, those who will go through the nitty-gritty – all associated with the puja have to be inoculated with at least one dose of vaccine,” Silver Spring housing complex secretary Indranil Choudhury said.

    Entry of visitors from outside during the puja will be regulated and it has been made mandatory for them to get at least one jab of the vaccine or carry Covid-19 negative certificate, he said.

    “But we may have to make changes in the plans in case we are hit with the third wave (of the pandemic),” said the secretary of the housing society in East Kolkata where the “khuti puja” was held on Raksha Bandhan day on August 22 following covid norms.

    Only a certain number of puja committee members will have access inside the pandal, he said.

    Preparations for the puja, which will be held on a small scale, are in full swing in Urbana Housing Complex of south Kolkata, said its resident, film-maker Arindam Sil.

    “Of the 3000 residents in our society, there are more than 700 children. They were depressed for the past several months. The occasion of khuti puja on August 15 broke that gloom,” Sil said.

    The organisers are not taking any chances.

    They have made vaccination compulsory for all involved, keeping in mind the situation and the threat of the third wave, he said.

    “Entry of outsiders will be regulated and everyone present will have to wear masks. The puja will be held but the scale of celebrations will be decided later keeping in mind the situation in October,” an organiser of the Central Enclave said.

    At Durganagar Government Housing in the northern fringes of the city, the cultural soiree has been scrapped like last year.

    The Durga Puja was held in a similar fashion in all these housing complexes last year when the pandemic struck.

    The Calcutta High Court last year declared all puja pandals across West Bengal no-entry zones to prevent the surge of Covid-19 cases.

    The state health department has decided to increase the number of paediatric beds especially at critical care treatment facilities across the state in view of the possible third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, a senior official said on Monday.

    A decision was made to add beds to the existing critical care units (CCUs), paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) and neonatal intensive care units (NICUs).

    The number of Sick Newborn Care Unit (SNCU) beds will also be augmented to make ready a total of 2,476 beds, the official said.

    “Training of doctors including paediatricians and general duty medical officers, the nursing staff and other support staff have been arranged,” he added.

    Meanwhile, seven people succumbed to Covid-19 in the state on Monday taking the death toll to 18,371, the health department said.

    The tally went up to 15,43,496 with 510 fresh cases.

    At least 628 people have recovered from the disease in the last 24 hours, the department said, adding that the discharge rate improved to 98.20 per cent.

    Till Monday, at least 15,15,789 patients have been cured of coronavirus in the state.

    The number of active cases was recorded at 9,336.

    Meanwhile, over five lakh vaccine doses were administered in West Bengal taking the total number of people vaccinated to 3.67 crore, a health department official said.

    Of them, over one crore have received both doses of the Covid-19 vaccine.

  • Durga Puja forum against overcrowding before pandals in evening hours

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: Forum for Durgotsab, a platform of 550 community Durga Pujas in the city and its neighbourhood, on Sunday urged member committees to urge revellers to visit pandals throughout the day, and not only during the evening hours in view of the COVID-19 pandemic situation.

    The forum, which had issued the first set of guidelines in July, said people should be encouraged to set out pandal hopping from the morning in order to avoid overcrowding in the evening.

    “What we want is to space out the crowd evenly. The objective is to strike a balance between Durga puja celebrations and maintaining pandemic protocols,” a member of Samajsebi Sangha, one of the prominent member committees of the forum, told PTI.

    He said another important precondition will be to fully vaccinate all members and others who assume important roles in the festival like electricians, drummers, decorators and priests.

    Other guidelines include making idols clearly visible from outside by erecting aesthetic but simple marquees, and maintaining social distancing during the rituals.

    Durga puja festivities begin from October 12.

    The West Bengal government has not yet come out with any directive on the state’s biggest festival.

    Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has repeatedly warned of a possible third wave of COVID-19 in September and underscored the need to vaccinate people.

  • Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee says mulling reopening schools, colleges after Durga Puja vacation

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said her government is weighing options for reopening schools and colleges on alternate days after the Durga Puja vacation in November.

    Educational institutions have been closed in the state since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in March last year.

    “However, nothing has been finalised just yet,” Banerjee told reporters following a meeting of the Global Advisory Board (GAB), headed by Nobel laureate Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee, at the state secretariat.

    The economist is in West Bengal to discuss Covid strategies.

    Several educationists, heads of academic institutions and doctors hailed Banerjee and her government’s approach towards reopening schools.

    Headmaster of state-run higher secondary school Jadavpur Vidyapith, Parimal Bhattacharya, told PTI if schools resume, physical classes can be held on alternate days adhering to Covid protocols.

    “Teachers and students will be more than willing I think. Though online classes are taking place in our institution at both secondary and higher secondary levels, students have been reported to be restive and depressed staying indoors,” Bhattacharya said.

    Office-bearer of Paschimbanga Sikshak Samity, Naba Kumar Karmakar, said it had recently proposed to the state government if in-campus higher classes can resume by August-end, in phases.

    “We think online education cannot be the alternative to campus classes. Many students cannot afford smart phones or laptops, which are necessary for virtual learning. So restarting physical classes is the only alternative,” he said.

    Professor Suranjan Das, Vice-Chancellor of Jadavpur University, said students grow up attending classes inside the campus, participating in interactive sessions and these help them in evolving.

    “If classes can resume with necessary safety measures, then that should be welcomed,” he said.

    The medical fraternity described the chief minister’s statement as a sign of positive thinking, which can go a long way in easing stress on children.

    “We have been trying to protect our children from the pandemic, but at the same time, we also must think about how much their education has been affected since the outbreak of the pandemic,” eminent physician Dr Kunal Sarkar said.

    Rajib Ghosh, member of the Guardians Forum of a reputed private school, however, said, “It has to be seen that the schools (especially private ones) don’t shift the entire responsibility concerning Covid safety protocols to the guardians.”

    Ghosh, father of a girl who is in Class 5, said the threats of a possible third wave should also be factored in.

  • COVID-19: Centre advises states to curb mass gatherings in view of upcoming festivals

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: In view of upcoming festivals, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan has written to all states to actively consider the imposition of local restrictions to curb mass gatherings.

    Bhushan said that some states still reflect signs of an upsurge in their daily cases and positivity.

    The letter read, “At the outset, let me appreciate your continued leadership and guidance to curb the spread of Covid cases in the country during the second wave of COVID19. Even though the trajectory of daily new cases has shown a steady decline over the last month, there are a few States which still reflect signs of upsurge in their daily cases and positivity,”

    “In this regard, directions issued under Disaster Management Act by MHA vide letter dated June 29, for focussed containment measures may kindly be referred to,” it read.

    “In light of this Order, and in view of upcoming festivals, such as Muharram 19th August), Onam (21st August), Janmashtami (30th August), Ganesh Chaturthi (10th Sep.) and Durga Puja (5th – 15th October 2021) etc, where large public gatherings are expected, it is advised that States may actively consider imposition of local restrictions in public observation of these festivals and curb mass gatherings,” Bhushan added in the letter.

    It added, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) have expressed concern regarding the potential of mass gathering events during festivals turning into super spreader events, thereby leading to a spike in Covid cases. This was earlier communicated to the States vide letter dated 20th July 2021 of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

    India on Wednesday reported 42,625 new COVID-19 cases, 36,668 recoveries and 562 deaths in 24 hours, as per the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

    An increase of 12,076 cases was recorded in the daily infections since Tuesday when 30,549 new cases were reported.

    With this, the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases has reached 3,17,69,132 including 3,09,33,022 discharges and 4,25,757 deaths.

    The number of active cases has gone up to 4,10,353, accounting for 1.29 per cent of the total number of cases. 

  • Bengal polls: Mamata refutes Shah’s allegations, says Home Minister ‘lying’

    By Express News Service
    KOLKATA: Retaliating Amit Shah’s attack on her, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said never before she saw such a Union Home Minister who lies to a great extent. She refuted Shah’s allegation of poor governance following cyclone Amphan.

    “He (Shah) is saying we don’t allow the celebration of Durga and Saraswati Pujas. I never saw a Home minister who lies to this extent. They have no idea about Ma Durga. Every year, we give financial grants to 28,000 clubs to organise Durga Puja. You are talking about Saraswati Puja. Do you know how to chant the mantra of Saraswati Puja?” asked the CM.

    Claiming her government’s success in dealing with cyclone Amphan, Banerjee said the lives of 10 lakh people were saved because of her government’s efforts. “The Prime Minister’s visit to Amphan-ravaged areas was a drama. The Rs 1,000 crore fund given by the central government was part of the due of the state government,” she said.

    ALSO READ | Bengal polls: Amit Shah pledges scheme for fisherfolk, 33% women’s quota in govt jobs

    Replying to Shah’s allegation of political violence, the Bengal CM said, “The BJP is bringing people from outside. You are accusing others of attacking your men. First, you control yourself. Remember, an injured tiger is more dangerous. We will win the upcoming Assembly elections with the highest margin.”

    Hitting back on her alleged minority appeasement politics, Mamata accused a section of BJP leaders of playing the card of divisive politics. “Some people are trying to do politics with the minorities. The BJP is funding the game. The Rath Yatra event of BJP was a flop one. They are doing politics on the line of religion,” she added.      

    Mamata castigated Shah’s announcement promising welfare schemes for fishermen. “BJP’s second-in-command went to Gangasagar. When the fishermen are attacked by tigers in the district, none of the BJP leaders are seen here,” she said.  

    Referring to farmers’ agitation, the CM took a jibe at the saffron camp. She said: “Your party was wiped out from Punjab by the farmers. You cannot handle the farmers’ agitation and dreaming of capturing power in Bengal.”

  • PM Narendra Modi named these revolutionaries in his Durga Puja address;

    Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday (October 22) addressed the people of West Bengal on the occasion of Durga Puja. He shared his puja greetings in Bengali and appealed to the people to adhere to social distancing norms and wear face masks while taking part in the festivities. 

    Talking about women empowerment, PM Modi said women in the country must be given the respect people give to Goddess Durga. In his 20-minute address. PM Modi said, “In the 21st century, our vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat, ‘self- reliant India’, will strengthen from the land of Bengal. We have to take Bengal’s culture, pride, progress to newer heights.”

    We are ensuring a speedy development for the people of Bengal through various schemes. We are doing everything to lessen the problems of the people of Bengal and improve their lifestyle. We have adopted the vision of Purbaday to develop Eastern India. West Bengal has to play an important role to make our vision a success,” the PM said.

    At the event organised at Eastern Zonal Cultural Centre (EZCC) in Salt Lake, the Prime Minister recalled the contributions of reformers from Bengal like Ram Mohun Roy and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, spiritual leaders Ramkrishna Paramhans and Swami Vivekananda, cultural giant Rabindranath Tagore, and revolutionaries like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Syama Prasad Mookerjee and Khudiram Bose in shaping India’s national identity.