The eight-day-long festival of Goddess Mahalakshmi, which was being celebrated in Joda amid much fervour and togetherness, concluded on Saturday with immersion of the idols. This year, the Mahalakshmi Puja was observed for the 53rd year in Joda. like earlier days, the famous puja also attracted thousand people from neighboring Sundergarh and Mayurbhanj districts and from the nearby areas of Jharkhand.
The puja committee had made adequate arrangements for shops, food stalls, mina bazaar and circus parties and opera parties in the Mahalaxmi puja ground. Prasad was distributed among devotees every day.
local police led by SDPO Ajaya Swain successfully managed the crowd during the puja. Committee president Dushasan Sahoo, vice-president Nilamani Mohanty, general secretary Rabinarayan Das, assistant secretary Kabu Jena and treasurer Bholanath Sahoo coordinated the whole programme.