Ranaghat, Oct.2: 10 community puja committees today took part in the ‘Puja Carnival’ organised by the Ranaghat Municipality as a small edition of the road show of Durga idols introduced by the chief minister Mamata Banerjee in last year that held on Red Road in Kolkata. Copying the concept, the Ranaghat civic body made a beginning to add fun to the immersion rally in the town.
The carnival was inaugurated at 4pm at Ranaghat College ground where the members of the 10 puja committees in the town gathered earlier with their Durga idols, colorful tableau. Starting the rally from College ground, the participants in the show walked through College road, Dakshinpara, Burrabazar before concluding the journey at Churni river ghat.
The Trinamul run civic body made it mandatory for the puja committees to make a public display of success of state government’s any one flagship welfare scheme like Kanyashree and Sabuj Sathi. The ten puja committees those took part in today’s carnival are Madhyapally Barowari, Shree Ramkrishna Smarak Samity, Paikpara Barowari, Bratri Sangha, Ranaghat Cricket and Athletic Club, 4-er Pally, Siddheshwari Tala Barowari, Sporting Association, De Choudhurypara Athletic Club.
Civic body chairman Parthasarathi Chattopadhyay said: “There are 72 approved pujas in the town. But, only 10 puja committees participated in this carnival. We are hopeful to get more puja organisers to our show”.
Ranen Bhadra, a resident of Nasrapara said: “This is a good initiative as people get the ultimate fun of puja before immersion”.
However, there are many puja organisers who carefully skipped the carnival as they that they are in no position to incur a hefty some of rupees only to take part in the carnival. “We organise the puja in a very laborious way collecting subscription from the locality. So for it is not possible to spend more money”.