The apex body of Durga Puja committees in the city, Jamshedpur Durga Puja Kendriya Samity (JDPKS) has plans to make the festival a low key affair. In view of the coronavirus pandemic, the organisers have decided to celebrate a toned down festival scheduled from October 22 to 26 this year.

Though, the pandals which are the heart of the celebrations will not be cancelled but the committees will work to make it simple and not spend a heavy amount on its construction.

In Jamshedpur alone, an approximate of around 320 pandals are built every year to mark the festival, that apart from that, numerous smaller pandals are also set up in different neighbourhoods.

The lockdown ordered by the Centre had also recently affected the celebrations for Ram Navmi, as people could not participate in rituals or customs and could not take out processions.

JDPKS general secretary Rambabu Singh, adding that the pandemic was certainly going to affect the puja this year. He said that the number of big budget pandals would come down due to the economy.

“ We have been asked by Kendriya Samity to take measures to celebrate the festival in a simple way. We will not spend much on pandal building. Expenses will be controlled. We will rather try and spend on social causes rather than decoration,” said a member of the committee.

The South Eastern Railway Traffic Colony Durga, Laxmi and Kali Puja Committee at Traffic Colony, Bagbera, which is Jamshedpur’s oldest, founded in 1906, has also announced plans to make it simple.

Months in advance the preparations for Durga Puja begins. But this time, there is no rush to make Durga idols. By this time, usually fifty percent work was completed every year. But this year, all the work has been stopped due to the coronavirus pandemic. Artists are facing a lot of uncertainty about this year's Durga Puja. They have been waiting for the lockdown to open. The place where artists make sculptures has now become a playground for their children.

Jamshedpur, is arguably only second to Kolkata in terms of hosting Durga puja pandals with more than 300 big and small pandals dotting the city and its outskirts and as many as 25 fairs near big-budgets pandals in Sonari, Circuit House Area, Tuiladungri, Golmuri and Jugsalai.