| Fair weather lifts Puja spirits | ||
Sept. 27: The secular ideals of Puja embraced the Northeast and the festive spirit engulfed the people as celebrations peaked on Maha Ashtami today. Fair weather also lifted the spirits of the people as the sky remained clear despite predictions of rain. In Meghalaya, D.D. Lapang, a Christian chief minister, and some of his ministerial colleagues paid obeisance to the Mother Goddess, praying for peace and prosperity. Lapang, accompanied by Union minister for water resources Vincent Pala, deputy chief minister B.M. Lanong and public health and engineering minister Prestone Tynsong, visited 12 puja pandals in Shillong. Lapang wished the people and hoped the festival would be celebrated in the true spirit of brotherhood, peace and tranquillity. In Assam, chief minister Tarun Gogoi offered prayers at the Hari Sabha community puja at Panbazar, which is one of the oldest Pujas in the state. He was accompanied by former minister Robin Bordoloi. Across the city, the rhythmic sound of dhaks (drums) reverberated in the air and a large number of devotees thronged the pandals to offer prayers to the goddess. The best was saved for nightfall when people packed into the streets by the thousands for the customary pandal-hopping. Dressed in their festive best, the Puja revellers jostled for space as they made a beeline to the brightly decorated pandals. The streets were packed with vehicles moving bumper to bumper under the watchful eyes of security personnel whose numbers have been doubled in public places. In Tripura, peaceful progress of the festival in the tribal-dominated hilly interiors of the state has come as a relief for officials. “Altogether, 311 community pujas are being held in the tribal-dominated areas across the state and we are happy that no untoward incident has been reported so far,” said Nepal Das, DIG (operations). However, late last night, a scooter rider and a biker died on the spot and three others, seated behind them, sustained serious injuries as the two-wheelers collided head-on in a semi-dark spot midway between Agartala Central Jail and Lal Bahadur club. |
Secular ideals colour festivities
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Sinlung
