Goddess Durga idols at the puja carnival in Kolkata on Friday.
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Durga Puja festival in Kolkata concluded on Friday with a grand carnival on Red Road. About 100 big-budget Durga Puja committees participated in the event, with thousands gathering to watch the idols of goddess Durga being taken for immersion in the Hooghly river.
CM Mamata attends event
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee along with other members of her Cabinet and seniormost officials of the State government participated in the event.
This was Ms. Banerjee’s first physical appearance at any event after a gap of almost a month. Ever since her return from Spain, the Chief Minister was confined to her residence due to a knee injury. She had inaugurated Durga Puja pandals virtually from her residence in Kalighat.
Each community Durga Puja that participated in the carnival performed a brief cultural programme of song and dance as they marched on Red Road. Along with various forms of the goddess, the visitors enjoyed varieties of songs and dance, all centred around Durga Puja.
Centre of attraction
Ms. Banerjee started the idea of a puja carnival in 2018, with the best of Durga Pujas being showcased at the event. Ever since, the carnival has emerged as a centre of attraction during Durga Puja.
The event also provides a few additional days for the idols to remain in Durga Puja pandals after Dashami, when the immersion of idols is supposed to take place. There are about 43,000 community Durga Puja pandals in the State and 3,000 in Kolkata.