Delhi bids farewell to goddess Durga

Chants of 'Jai Ma Durga' resonated in the air amidst the beating of drums and frenzied dancing as devotees across the city bade farewell to the goddess Monday.

The devotees, many with their faces smeared with red vermillion, danced in front of the idols of the deity.

There are over 400 puja samitis in Delhi.

Hundreds of men, women and children from all walks of life carrying the idols of goddess Durga crowded the six Yamuna ghats since Monday afternoon as they immersed the idols one by one with misty eyes.

"This is an emotional moment for all of us. After so many days, ma (goddess Durga) becomes like a family member and it is tough to bid farewell," said Anand Biswas, a 42-year-old resident of Mayur Vihar.

The immersion ceremony of idols of the goddess Durga and her four children -- Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesha and Kartik -- symbolises the end of the goddess's annual sojourn to her paternal home and she returns to her husband Lord Shiva at their heavenly abode on Mount Kailash.

The Delhi Police as well as the civic authorities had made elaborate arrangements to ensure that the immersion of the idols passed off peacefully.

According to Rupanjan Bhattacharya, secretary of Vasundhara Enclave Pujo Samiti, adequate arrangements and security was in place.

"There was a crowd of over 2,000 people at the Kalindi Kunj ghat and around 500 Durga idols were immersed in the Yamuna. The arrangements were satisfactory," Bhattacharya told IANS.

Bhattacharya further said that their idol had been prepared from bio-degradable clay and non-toxic paints.

"People are aware and no one wants to unnecessarily pollute the Yamuna there were many other like us who used nature friendly ingredients to prepare their idols," he said.