JAGATSINGHPUR: Durga Puja fervour gripped the industrial district of Jharsuguda on Saturday as thousands of devotees thronged the puja pandals on Mahasaptami. Different Puja Committees have erected huge innovative pandals with illumination to attract the revellers.
The devotees from across the district offered ‘Pushpanjali’ (floral libations) to the Goddess amid chanting of mantras (hymns). Later in the day, Dhakis from Bengal played ‘Dhak’ (drums) to mark the festival. The drum beats are an integral part of Durga Puja here.
“The rhythmic beats of the special variety of the drum from the day of Sasthi is a special attraction,” said Sidharth Sarkar, secretary of Town Durga Puja Committee.
“The most common form of offering on Durga Puja is Khichdi, served with semi dry vegetable preparation, sweet tomato chutney and rice pudding,” said Ramchandra Panigrahi, the priest of the Station Chowk Durga temple.
While `25 lakh was spent by Mangalbazar Shivasakti Puja Committee, `20.2 lakh has been spent by Om Sri Puja Committee. Similarly, the budget of Town Durga Committee is estimated to be around `19.32 lakh. The Rotary Club of Jharsuguda organised Dandiya Utsav.
Meanwhile, security arrangement has been beefed up at different locations for peaceful conduct of the festival and traffic management.