The four-day Durga Puja rituals began across the State on Wednesday as the Goddess was invoked with solemn hymns of Ya Devi Sarvavuteshu with the Maha Saptami Puja in pandals.
But the puja ambience descended in Cuttack city on Tuesday evening when the pandals observed the Bela Barani (invitation) of the Goddess amid beating of drums. This year, over 155 pandals are observing pujas and 77 of them are worshiping Maa Durga in their mandaps.
Hundreds of devotees on Wednesday morning thronged the pandals to witness the Saptami Puja, which included Netra Utsav or Chakshu Dan and Shakti Puja.The city roads, however, witnessed the puja rush in the evening as the police imposed restrictions by introducing one-way traffic in the major roads. The pandals sporting silver tableaus and golden crowns for the deities are the star attractions.
This year, at least 18 mandaps are sporting silver tableaus in the city with the Naya Sarak puja committee joining the elite group for the first time. Similarly, at least seven mandaps have used gold ornaments and gold crowns for the deities.The Choudhury Bazar puja committee, which is the trendsetter in making silver tableau and golden crown in the city, has used over 15 kg of gold in its tableau and ornaments of the deities.
Choudhury Bazar puja committee president Ganesh Chandra Sahoo said, “Besides the ornaments of Maa Durga and the accompanying deities, we have made golden crowns for them, including that of the demon Mahisashura,” adding that over three kg of gold has been used in the silver tableau.
The Naya Sarak puja committee joined the elite silver tableau group for the first time. “We have used over three quintals of silver in making the tableau and an accompanying gate in the pandal at a cost of Rs 1.5 crore,” said committee president Sanjay Kumar Sahoo.
On security and safety of these valuable properties, each puja committee has its own security arrangements made at the pandal. “Volunteers from the locality are appointed as special police officers to provide security at the pandal round the clock,” said Mahanagar puja committee secretary Bhikari Das, adding that each of these elite puja pandals has installed CCTV cameras to keep a strong vigil.
Das further said that in view of several theft incidents taking place in various temples over these years, the puja pandals have been asked to make special arrangements for storing these valuables after the puja. “The committees have their own storerooms to store these silver and gold materials under security throughout the year, he said, adding that the puja committees feel it safer to keep the valuables under their own instead of keeping them in bank lockers.