Dhubri: Idols from 113 community puja committees joined a grand immersion procession in Dhubri. The procession stretched nearly 1.5 km and covered around 4.7 km through the town before culminating at the immersion ghat opposite the Dhubri DC’s bungalow.The participating puja committees assembled at the PWD office point. The procession featured both mechanised immersion arrangements and traditional rituals.While most committees opted for mechanised immersion this year, several century-old puja committees continued to follow traditional manual methods. Their idols were among the first to reach the immersion ghat, where they were placed on large boats and taken into the river.Following the prescribed rituals, the idols were immersed amid hymns, the chanting of mantras and marking the conclusion of the festivities.Dhubri Municipal Board chairperson Debamoy Sanyal said the idols were immersed using both mechanised and manual methods and that the process passed off peacefully.However, Dhubri Puja Coordination Committee president Prosenjit Dutta pointed out several shortcomings in the management of the procession, despite its largely peaceful conclusion.“From next year, we have to sort out the issues that delayed the immersion of idols despite mechanised arrangements being in place,” Dutta said.Expressing displeasure over the alleged mismanagement along the lengthy procession route, Dipankar Majumder, a member of Kalibari Trustee Board, alleged that Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) had failed to raise overhead cables despite being asked to do so ahead of the procession.“Because of this, the crown of the Mother Goddess was damaged on Durga Das Road. The police also could not minimise the gap between one truck and another, which caused further delays,” Majumder said.The reported damage to an idol’s crown and delays caused by gaps between procession vehicles have raised concerns among organisers about coordination, route management and advance preparations. While the immersion passed off largely peacefully, organisers stressed the need to address these shortcomings to ensure smoother arrangements in the coming years.
