BADARPUR, Oct 7 - Brisk preparations are on at Badarpur, Karimganj, and other parts of Karimganj district for Durga Puja, the biggest festival of the Bengali Hindu community, from October 15 to 19.
Office-bearers of over 200 puja committees of Badarpur and its adjoining areas, are working hard to make the celebrations a grand success. Activities relating to formation of puja committees and preparations of budgets are already over. Other work like pandal construction, illumination, and fund-raising activities are now going on. Different dhaki teams from West Bengal and Tripura, have already reached Badarpur and other places of the district of Karimganj, along with the rest of Barak Valley.
The puja markets of Badarpur, especially the Railway and Civil markets, are flooded with people buying clothes etc. A tremendous rush of customers, is being witnessed in markets all over the district despite the steep prices of all items.
This year, more than 200 puja pandals are being set up at Badarpur and adjoining places, where a lot of different programmes have been lined up. These include: puja inauguration by distinguished personalities, Sasthi Puja, �kala-bou aanayan, �pratima sthapan�, �Sandhi Puja�, �Kumari Puja�, � Mahayajna�, aarati competition , �Mana Bhog�, �Maha Prasaad� distribution, Saradiya cultural functions, �Dashami Pratima Shobha Yatra�, �Aparajita Raksha Bandhan�, exchange of Vijaya greetings� and �Misti-mukh-aapyan� etc.
Some puja committees here, like Badarpur Rly Ananda Dham Kalibari Puja Committee, Badarpur Jangla Kalibari Puja Committee, Badarpur Railway Traffic Colony Puja Committee, Badarpur Railway GRP Colony Sarbajanin Puja Committee and Badarpur ST Road Durga Puja Committee., etc are arranging special programmes. This year, the Badarpur ST Road is completing 46 years. Noted citizen of Badarpur Town Late Suresh Chandra Banik was the first founder secretary of this puja committee and since then, this puja is being celebrated with great pomp and grandeur every year. Maintaining this tradition, the Badarpur ST Road Durga Puja Committee, this year, has decided to construct a massive pandal, and the Durga idol therein will be 12 foot high, said members of the ST Road Puja Committee.
It may be mentioned here that, among all the pujas of Badarpur, only one puja will be celebrated entirely by women at Badarpur Ghat, by the Dashabhuja Sarbajanin Puja Committee.
