বাংলা | Epaper

বাংলা E-Paper 📍 Dhaka 📅 Monday | 12 October 2026, 27 Ashswin 1433 PID registration number 06

HEADLINE

● Haaland jokes he sees cameraman more than girlfriend ● Grameen Kalyan must pay Tk 666 cr in taxes: HC ● Govt begins nationwide data collection for Family Card scheme ● Robert E. Hall, Michael Woodford win Nobel economics prize ● LPG dealers to stop sale for 2-day ● PM expected to inaugurate Cox's Bazar Airport in Nov ● Protesting students lock newly appointed CUET VC inside his office

964 Durga Puja mandaps prepared with four-tier security

Published : Monday, 12 October, 2026 at 5:55 PM

Observer Online Report

A total of 964 mandaps across Rangpur district, including the city, will host Durga Puja this year, with authorities preparing a four-tier security system to ensure peaceful celebrations.

Of the total, 164 mandaps are in Rangpur city’s 33 wards, an increase of 10 from last year, while 800 are spread across the district’s eight upazilas.

According to district figures, 94 mandaps are in Rangpur Sadar, 99 in Gangachara, 165 in Taraganj, 125 in Badarganj, 151 in Mithapukur, 100 in Pirganj, 91 in Pirgachha and 75 in Kaunia.

The government has allocated 600 kilogrammes of rice for each mandap under the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief. The rice will be handed over to the respective mandap committees before the festival begins.

Preparations for the Hindu community’s biggest religious festival are nearing completion across the district. Artisans are painting idols, adding ornaments and decorating pandals ahead of the celebrations.

Idols of Goddess Durga, along with those of Lakshmi, Saraswati, Kartik, Ganesh and the demon, are being prepared using straw, bamboo, string and clay. Artisans and organisers are working from morning until late at night to complete the work on time.

Organisers said rising material costs, financial constraints and a shortage of skilled artisans had led many mandaps to collect idols from neighbouring Rangpur, Lalmonirhat and Kurigram districts. Making an idol typically takes around one to one-and-a-half months.

Rajat Chandra Roy, general secretary of Nilam Kharida Sadra Sarbojanin Shri Shri Durga Mandir in Kaunia, said idol-making and decoration at the temple were nearing completion. Preparations were also under way to ensure the safety of devotees and visitors.

Across the district, puja committees and temple authorities are completing pandal construction, decorations, lighting arrangements and preparations for religious and cultural programmes. Volunteer teams are also being formed to help ensure visitors’ safety and smooth movement during the festival.

Prashanta Kumar Roy, general secretary of the Rangpur metropolitan committee of the Bangladesh Puja Celebration Council, said Durga Puja would be held at 964 mandaps across the district, with more venues than last year. He said the celebrations would include devotional music programmes, clothing and *mahaprasad* distribution, *arati* competitions and Vijayadashami processions.

Palash Kanti Nag, member-secretary of the Rangpur Metropolitan Citizens’ Committee, called for special security measures at vulnerable temples and mandaps, monitoring cells to oversee law and order, CCTV cameras and increased patrols by dedicated mobile teams of law enforcement agencies. He also urged the authorities to take effective and impartial action against those involved in disrupting communal harmony.

Ram Jiban Kundu, president of the Bangladesh Puja Celebration Council’s Rangpur district committee, expressed confidence that the festival would be celebrated peacefully with the support of the administration, public representatives and local residents.

Rangpur Superintendent of Police Mohammad Mozammel Haque said extensive security measures had been taken to ensure peaceful celebrations. Law enforcement personnel would be deployed before the festival began, and regular meetings had been held with mandap committees to coordinate security arrangements.

He said the four-tier security system would be supported by volunteers from the mandap committees.

“We hope the festival will be celebrated in a festive atmosphere. If everyone remains alert, there will be no disorder during the celebrations,” he said.

Shamsuzzaman Samu, chairman of the Rangpur Development Authority and convener of Rangpur Metropolitan BNP, urged mandap committees to take responsibility for security and install CCTV cameras, ensuring that they remained operational so footage could be reviewed to identify those responsible for any untoward incidents.

He also said initiatives had been taken to form committees for each Durga Puja mandap in line with the prime minister’s directives, urging everyone to play a responsible role in ensuring peaceful celebrations.

The countdown to Durga Puja began with Mahalaya on Saturday (October 10). The main celebrations will begin with Maha Shashthi on October 16 and conclude with the immersion of idols on Vijayadashami on October 21.

The five-day festival will observe Maha Shashthi, Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and Vijayadashami through religious rituals and celebrations. According to Hindu religious tradition, Goddess Durga will arrive on horseback and depart by boat this year.

sks