Bengali community comes together for Durga Puja

Jalandhar, October 11

It was a time of the year when as many as 250 Bengali families settled in Jalandhar came together and held four-day Durga Puja celebrations.

The families had gone to Beas this afternoon carrying Durga idol for immersion.

Manas Dutta Roy, a professor of textile technology from Dr BRAmbedkar National Institute of Technology, shared, “We really look forward to these four days of the year. The programme had begun three days back with Saptami Puja. Contests for playing shankh and singing the longest ulu-lu-lu were held for women. Children participated in painting competitions”. Women dressed in typical tanth sarees could be seen attending the daily bhoj with their families. Men too danced to the beats of dhaki (drum). Mamta Ganguly, a teacher, said, “It was great fun as we all sang devotional hymns, shared our navratra meals, jointly prepared prasad of fruits, kheer and sweet yellow rice on Ashtmi and performed Sandhya Aarti on Nauvmi.” President of the association and NIT professor SK Sinha, secretary and businessman Prasenjit Saha and treasure-cum-SBoP employee DChandra said, “It is this time of the year when we feel that our children get to know about our culture and traditions. They mingle well and learn from one another.” —TNS