Darjeeling: Siliguri is all set to hold the first ever Durga Puja carnival. A preparatory meeting was held on Saturday to chalk out the logistics for the carnival.
With the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribing Kolkata's Durga Puja on the list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity has raised the bar for this festival in Bengal.
Gautam Deb, Mayor, Siliguri Municipal Corporation chaired a meeting in Siliguri on Saturday with the district administration, police, Siliguri Jalpaiguri Development Authority and the Siliguri Municipal Corporation chalking out plans for the carnival to be held in Siliguri on October 7 evening. "The carnival will start after sun sets at around 6:30pm from Venus More till Air View More on Hill Cart Road. There will be tableaus, cultural shows and Durga idols atop vehicles in the carnival," stated Deb.
There will be 50 participatory tableaus taking part in the carnival. "This will include a cultural tableau from the Hills and four from the 4 rural blocks. We will start sending out invitations to the participants from Monday," added the Mayor. The participants will be performing on the road or atop the tableaus.
Cultural shows will be held in stages put up in all vantage points along the route. The main stage will be erected near the Air View More. The carnival will be beamed on LCD screens placed at all vantage points.
"The tableaus coming from the other end of Hill Cart Road (Mahananda Bridge side) will take the Panitanki, Bhaktinagar, Bidhan Road route to join in the main procession from Venus More. The carnival will continue till Air View More from where the vehicles carrying the idols will head for Mahananda while the other vehicles and participants will take the Bardhaman road to go to their respective destinations," added Deb. The Siliguri Metropolitan Police is working on the routes in detail to ensure a smooth carnival.