Chorbagan Durga idol immersed sans rituals after fatal stampede
· India · Hindustan Times, NDTV
The Durga idol of Chorbagan Sarbojanin Puja was immersed in the Hooghly River on Saturday, one week after a stampede at the pandal killed 19 people. The farewell rituals of Debi Boron and Sindoor Khela were skipped after retired judge Anindita Roy Saraswati, heading the SIT probing the tragedy, cleared the immersion on condition the main pandal structure be preserved. The massive idol was extracted through a gate entrance cut on Friday, with residents lining the route to bid farewell while a large police contingent supervised the process. A black banner on a truck conveyed condolences, and an elderly woman was seen weeping as she folded her hands before the idol.
Why it matters
The absence of customary Debi Boron and Sindoor Khela rituals underscores the community's mourning and the SIT's conditional approval, reflecting how the stampede continues to shape public observance of the festival.
Read the original report — Hindustan Times
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