40-ft-high Saraswati idol sees record number of devotees throng pandal in Agartala

“When everyone was stuck astatine location during the lockdown and radical were conscionable returning to mean life, we thought of helping them instrumentality to normalcy with a alternatively uncommon thought of having large idols. We person enquired crossed the authorities and adjacent the Northeast and are assured that ours is the tallest Goddess Saraswati idol successful Tripura arsenic good arsenic Northeast India,” helium said.

While a 25-ft-high Saraswati idol was installed successful 2021, 40-ft-high idols person been hosted astatine the venue since 2022, helium added.

Much similar the 111-ft-high Saraswati idol astatine Batanagar successful West Bengal’s Maheshtala municipality, Tripura’s 40-ft idol has go a large tourer attraction of the season. Nearly 80,000 radical visited the pandal past year, the organisers say, adding that the effect is adjacent bigger this year.

Idol creator Tarak Paul from Kumortuli, West Bengal, made the idol arsenic a replica of a 16-ft Saraswati idol installed successful Washington DC aft Indonesia talented it to the US government.

The puja, organised astatine the Bardowali Higher Secondary School crushed successful Bardowali, the location turf of Chief Minister Manik Saha, is being held arsenic portion of an eight-day just and taste evenings.

Sunita Deb, who visited the Puja on with her relatives, said, “I, on with my family, went to the Saraswati Puja past clip astatine Bardowali. This year, though committee exams are near, we volition spell determination once.”

The just festivities started connected January 26 with a melange of antithetic events, including puppetry, mime art, go-as-you-like contests for children, uludhwani (ululating competition), conch ammunition blowing contests for women and 2 jatrapala (theatre act) performances connected Noti Binodini and Baba Taroknath. Cultural troupes from Assam and West Bengal are besides expected to perform.

The organisers are besides arranging a tiny just with implicit 50 stalls, with a budget of Rs. 15 lakh. “We don’t cod immoderate subscriptions from section people. Businessmen from the locality assistance us, and we negociate the remainder from a token stall interest charged from section traders who acceptable up shops astatine the mela,” 1 of the organizing committee executives said.

Tapas Karmakar of Jogendranagar, connected the outskirts of Agartala city, said, “I person seen the idol connected Facebook. I person travel for the archetypal time. I haven’t seen specified gangly idols before. It’s a large record. I person brought my household to spot it.”

Pronoy Debnath, a section nonmigratory and first-year machine subject pupil astatine ICFAI University, Agartala, said it was absorbing to spot specified an idol each year. “It has go benignant of a tradition. It is large and unique. It is simply a alternatively large attraction. Saraswati Puja comes erstwhile a year. So I would impulse everyone to travel and spot this heritage,” helium said.

Aparajita Sarkar, Dip Das and a fewer of their friends—all Class 10 students astatine a section school—were seen taking selfies and radical photos successful beforehand of the puja pandal. “The idol is nice. To travel and sojourn this idol is simply a beauteous experience. The decoration is beautiful. We person plans to travel again with our families,” 1 of them said and others concurred.