Bandarban:Durga Puja mandaps in Bandarban are bustling with devotees and visitors on Maha Navami, which is one of the most significant days of the Sharadiya Durga Puja festival. The district is home to 33 puja mandaps set up for this year's celebrations.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, devotees are actively participating in religious rituals from morning until night, offering prayers, and sharing the festive spirit. Despite the ongoing celebrations, a sense of farewell is beginning to resonate among the devotees as the festival nears its conclusion.
People of all ages are contributing to the lively atmosphere, making the final days of the festival vibrant. As the festival draws to a close, the puja mandaps remain crowded, and an emotional air emerges as devotees prepare to bid farewell to Goddess Durga.
On Maha Navami, families and groups are visiting the mandaps, lighting incense sticks and candles, and offering prayers. The scene is filled with devotees bowing in reverence, children enjoying the festivities, and families sharing joyful moments.
Traditional sounds of drums, conch shells, bells, and brass instruments, along with the ululations of women, enhance the festive environment at the mandaps and surrounding areas.
The Sharadiya Durga Puja, a five-day festival and the largest religious celebration for the Hindu community, commenced last Friday with the Maha Shashthi rituals. Maha Navami holds particular importance, and the festival will conclude with the Bijoya Dashami, marked by the immersion of Goddess Durga's idols.
Rajeshwar Das Biplob, president of the Bandarban Central Durga Puja Udjapon Parishad, stated that the festival's formalities would end tomorrow on Bijoya Dashami with the immersion of the idols. He mentioned that the Goddess Durga would then depart from the mortal world.
Md. Inamul Islam Khandaker, Superintendent of Police in Bandarban, reported that the festival is being celebrated in a festive and peaceful atmosphere throughout the district, with no untoward incidents reported.