GAURIPUR, March 12 � The people of greater Salkocha area have decided to observe the Chandardinga Festival for the first time on the Chandardinga hillock on the bank of the Brahmaputra river with a three-day programme from March 27 to 29.
For this purpose, a committee has been formed which is headed by Rudra Kumar Deb Barman, Mahadev Goswami, Guneswar Brahma and Bishnu Ram Barman as president, working president, general secretary and assistant secretary respectively. The Deputy Commissioner, Dhubri, ADC Bhogeswar Shyam and ranger R Barman have been nominated as chief advisers. It may be mentioned here that the idea of observance of the Chandardinga Festival came to Bhogeswar Shyam when he visited the historic Shiva temple, popularly known as Paglabahar Dham, situated on the hillock beside the Brahmaputra.
It is also mentioned in the Padma Puran that merchant Chanda came to the area with 14 commercial boats for trading purposes, but these got drowned and he was swept away downstream. He (Chanda), however, never lost hold of an idol of Lord Shiva and somehow arrived at Kaithpara near Baitamari in the district of Bongaigaon and a Shiva temple was also established there. From time immemorial, the temples at Chandardinga and Kaithpara have been regularly visited by devotees from all walks of life.
