Durga Puja fete to be austere this year

CUTTACK: Durga Puja in the Millennium City is all set to be a Spartan affair this year with the Puja Committees and organisers deciding to scale down the celebration due to the flood devastation across the State. The committees have decided to shun the extravagant show in terms of mandap decorations, illumination, entertainment and musical programmes. The immersion ceremony will also be a low-key affair. The proposal has been put forth in the recent preparatory meeting held by Commissionerate Police to the unanimous commitment for restraint. “The show of pomp has been consciously shed by the puja committees to save on the expenses and carry out relief and assistance operations in flood-ravaged areas. The puja committees have also offered to contribute open-handedly to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF)”, Cuttack Mahanagar Puja Committee president Pravat Tripathy said. There are more than 154 puja mandaps in the Silver City. The austerity measures and the spirit of assistance would generate lakhs of rupees for the CMRF. All the committees and organisations would be asked to donate before October 2. The Badambadi-Shankarpur Puja Committee has promised generous contribution to the CMRF. “We will also be assisting relief operations by other organisations. The donation would be made in the next few days,” Badambadi Shankarpur Puja Committee secretary Bibhu Prasad Jethi said. The puja mandap at the largest bus terminus of the State has always been a major attraction. This time too ` 4 lakh is being spent on designing it on the lines of a palace of Chinese emperor. “The payments for the arch have been made three months back. We cannot cut down on it now,” Jethi professed. Collector and president of the Cuttack Mahanagar Puja Committee Girish SN has welcomed the decision. “With more than 19 districts and all the 14 blocks of Cuttack affected by floods, this gesture by the Puja Committees is exemplary. We hope to generate substantial amount for the CMRF and see active involvement of committees in the relief operations,” he said.