Durga Puja celebration a low-key affair in Noida amid Covid pandemic

Organisers say they have restricted the number of visitors to 100 in a day and that they will be streaming puja rituals online

The five-day celebrations of Durga Puja in Noida will start on Monday without usual fanfare. Following the government’s guidelines in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, major puja committees in the city have decided to keep the celebration a low-key affair.

An empty Durga Puja pandal at Sector 25 in Noida on Sunday. (Sunil Ghosh /HT)

Organisers said that they have restricted the number of visitors to 100 in a day and that they will be streaming puja rituals online. The muted Durga Puja festivities will start from Monday with shashthi puja and end on Friday with Vijayadashmi. In the pre-Covid times, major puja pandals in the city used to attract hundreds of visitors in a day.

The Noida Kalibari Durga Puja will be held at the community hall in Sector 26. This year will mark the 38th ‘Durgotsava’ to be organised by the Noida Durga Puja Samiti.

“There will be no theme for the pandal nor any food stalls this year. We have also cut down on our usual budget of ₹60-70 lakh during pre-Covid times. This year the celebrations are being organised within a budget of ₹15 lakh,” said Anupam Bannerjee, a member of the Noida Durga Puja Samiti.

Sector 61’s Balaka Bengali Cultural Association is celebrating its 13th year of ‘Durgotsav’ but without any pomp and show as was the norm in pre-Covid times.

“We used to get huge sponsorships and hold cultural events, but this time association members are themselves arranging the funds required to hold a simple puja. All the rituals will be streamed online and we have discouraged residents from coming to the pandal,” said a member of the association who did not wish to be named.

In order to restrict entry of visitors, the Sarbojanin Durga Puja Committee in Sector 34 will be issuing passes to only 100 visitors.

“The Durga Puja celebrations this year will be restricted for just 100 people and in order to ensure this, we have issued passes for entry to the pandal that has been set up at the community hall of the area. The prasad will be distributed among the guests in small boxes,” said Tarun Bagchi, a member of the Sector 34 puja committee.

The big Durga idols will also not be an attraction at the pandals this year as idols have been restricted to a height of five feet, as per the government guidelines.

The Jalvayu Vihar Sanskritik Kalyan Samiti will be celebrating its 29th year of Durga Puja at the puja ground in Sector 25. “This time there will not be any theme associated with the puja. Besides, the idol of the goddess would be smaller in size. To make the idol, eco-friendly materials like clay, bamboo, and rice husk have been used,” said Jaya De, one of the organisers at the Sector 25 samiti.

However, there is a silver lining too. According to 52-year-old Vipul Sarkar, who has been in the business of making Durga idols in Noida for the past 20 years, he is doing better business this year compared to last year.

“Last year we only got about 10 orders for Durga idols. However, this time we have got around 50 orders from different organisers not only in Noida but nearby areas like Ghaziabad, Faridabad and Mayur Vihar. All the idols’ height has been restricted to five feet. We hope by next year the pandemic will be over and celebrations will be back to its pre-Covid times,” said Sarkar, whose workshop is in Nithari village of Noida.

Police said that proper implementation of Covid protocols will be ensured at the pandals. “Police patrolling will take place around the puja pandals in the city to ensure Covid protocols are followed. Police force will be on alert throughout the five days of the puja, especially on the day of the idol immersion,” said Rannvijay Singh, additional DCP, Noida.