HT Correspondent
HOJAI, Oct 1: With less than a week left, preparations for the smooth celebration of Durga Puja festivities in Hojai are going on in full swing. Members of various puja committees are working relentlessly to complete the pandals on time, while artisans are busy giving the final attractive touches to the idols of Maa Durga, Ganesha, Laxmi, Saraswati, and Kartikeya. Tent-house workers are busy shaping massive theme-based welcome arches and light gates on the streets, lanes, and by-lanes of the pandals. This year, Mahalaya will be celebrated on October 2, while Durga Puja celebrations will begin with Sasthi Puja on October 9, and the immersion of the deities, i.e., Dashami, will be held on October 13.
In Hojai, the idol of Eighteen Hands Maa Durga has always been a special attraction for devotees. Since 1967, Adarsha Durga Puja Samity has been organising this Puja. This is their 57th year. “We believe that when Maa Durga slaughtered Mahishasura, she was in her eighteen-handed gesture. So, we started worshipping the Eighteen Hands Maa Durga idol,” said Mohan More, Member, Adarsha Durga Puja Samity, while speaking with our correspondent. He informed, “In this pandal, Maa is worshipped following all the Vedic rituals.” He added that earlier, the puja used to be organised at Raibhadur Lane, but since 2020, it has been shifted to Jugal Kishore Kedia Bhawan. He further said, “This year, Adarsha Durga Puja Committee is geared up to celebrate the festivity with more enthusiasm and joy. The idol is made of special soil, more emphasis is given to decoration and management, and this year, the pandal’s theme is based on Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, which will be a point of attraction for devotees.”
“As per mythology, it is believed that Goddess Durga was in an eighteen-hands posture when she slaughtered Mahishasura for the first time, but with his power, he reshaped himself again. Next, Maa Durga killed him with a sixteen-hands posture, but he reshaped once again. Finally, Goddess Durga, in her ten-hands posture, slaughtered the buffalo demon, and as such, the ten-hands Durga idol is generally worshipped,” explained an educationalist.
There are many other Samities in Hojai where the preparations for Durga Puja are in the final stage, such as Sarbajanik Durga Bari (celebrating since 1935), Kediapuram Durga Puja, Govind Ashram (celebrating since 1940), Natun Bazar Durga Puja (celebrating since 1947), Nabakalpa Durga Puja Committee, Marwari Durgoutsav Samity, Ramkrishna Mission, Sahapatty, Govinda Pally, Kali Bari, Krishna Nagar, Harijan Colony, Nepali Mandir (since 1977). Notably, most of the Durga Puja Samities here are working to create mass awareness on the ill effects of plastic, the significance of plantation, and the conservation of water and electricity through banners and tableaus. On the other hand, the Hojai district administration is fully prepared to organise the festivity in a systematic and organised manner so that everyone can enjoy the celebration and worship Maa Durga peacefully.
