Indigenous people dance on Durga Puja in Dinajpur. Photo: STAR

'Maha Ashtomi, Nabami' were celebrated here in Dinajpur on Friday and Saturday, and the biggest festival of the Hindu community ended on Sunday with immersion after offering prayers, dancing with rituals at every mandap of the districts of Dinajpur and Joypurhat.
The beat of drums, clash of cymbals, ringing of bells, dances before the idol of Durga, incense wafting in the air, all form an integral part of Durga Puja.
Durga Puja is a festival with a series of rituals followed on each day of the puja. Starting from the day of the Mahalaya, the days of Sashthi, Saptami, Ashtami, Navami and Dashami or Bijoya Dashami are observed with unique rituals each day.
Devotees recited the mantras and offered flowers to Goddess Durga (pushpanjali) and prayed for her blessings.
After the pushpanjali ceremony, prasad was served. Throughout Dinajpur town a heavy rush was witnessed in the temples, as people came in large numbers to pay obeisance to Goddess Durga.

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AMINUL ISLAM, Mymensingh
A two day cultural programme was organised at Sree Sree Shivbari Temple in the town to mark Durga Puja. Hindu women celebrated the puja at the temple under the banner of 'Sharodiya Durgutsab Committee' , a first such initiative in the country.
Noted Tagore artiste Sadi Mohammad Takiullah and dancer Shibli Mohammad also made a courtesy tour to the venue.
The cultural programmes were held on the Ashtami and Nabami puja. The programmes included rendition of classical music, Rabindra, Nazrul, and Lalon songs, dance sequences including Arati Nrittya and poetry recitation.
The two day cultural show was followed by arati nrittya. The arati nrittya, an integral part of the celebration, is traditionally performed by men but the event broke new ground as women took centre stage in a colourful celebration.
Shima Dutta, Cultural secretary of the Celebration Committee conducted the programme.
“We enjoyed this year's Durga Puja which was very enjoyable as a group of women took charge to organise the biggest celebration so far,” said Suchitra Sen Gupta, general secretary of the Puja Celebrate Committee. According to
President of the puja celebration committee Shukla Das, “The positive response from the community, especially from the women will encourage them to observe Durga Puja every year.”
“Generally Durga Puja is not celebrated at the temple but we started it this year,” said Swapon Sen Gupta, secretary of Shivbari temple.

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Rabiul Hasan, Chapainawabganj
The Harijan community celebrated Durga Puja at a Puja mandap of Harijan village in Chapainawabganj town with traditional verve:
prayers, dance and spreading the message of joy and brotherhood. They also distributed sweetmeats after offering prayers every day.
“We are very proud of our traditional puja and have given money to set up the mandap. We have been organising the Durga Puja here for the last seven years. The celebration is very traditional and ethnic, because Puja is our culture, our heritage. Over a passage of time there has been a much greater involvement of the Harijan people in the district,” said president Dulal Kumar of the Harijan Puja Committee, a view echoed by its secretary Prokash Chandi Das.
Unfortunately while members of the Hindu community visited many Puja mandap to offer prayers, most did not come to the mandap of the marginalised Harijans. The latter complained that they faced discrimination in every sphere and called on the government to take initiatives to alleviate their distress.