Kolkata’s Eden Gardens hosted a large Durga Puja event for Mahalaya on Saturday, featuring a light-and-sound presentation, cultural performances and a drone show, while freight vehicle movement was restricted on parts of Strand Road and St George’s Gate Road for traffic management.
The event was organised by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government, according to a report by Sangbad Pratidin – Kolkata. The report described it as the first Durga Puja programme in West Bengal during the tenure of Chief Minister Shubhendu Adhikari and said the event was staged as a major public celebration ahead of the festival.
The programme began with dhak performances, an indigenous dance presentation and a performance by singer Lagnajita Chakraborty. Singers Shaan, Lagnajita, Kaushiki Chakraborty and Antara Mitra were also scheduled to perform. Musician Shantanu Moitra and his group, along with instrumentalist Debarshi Bhattacharya and others, took part in the programme.
A light-and-sound show presented the journey of the Durga Puja season from the Mahalaya broadcasts traditionally associated with the beginning of the festival through to Sindur Khela on Dashami, the report said. The programme was followed by a drone show involving thousands of drones. Images of Goddess Durga and a lotus were displayed in the sky above the venue.
Several public figures attended the event, including June Malia, Swapan Dasgupta and Sukhendu Sekhar Ray. Singer Iman Chakraborty arrived at the venue dressed in a red sari, while actor Rituparna Sengupta accompanied the chief minister in a procession from Red Road to Eden Gardens. The report also said that author Taslima Nasrin was present on stage.
The event required temporary changes to freight traffic movement around the Eden Gardens area. A notification issued by the Kolkata Traffic Police suspended the movement of goods vehicles on Strand Road and on St George’s Gate Road between Raja Woodmunt Street and Hastings Crossing. The restriction was scheduled to remain in force from 4 am to 4 pm on Saturday.
The traffic arrangement highlights the operational requirements of staging a large public programme in central Kolkata, where roads around Eden Gardens also serve commercial and freight activity. The notification specifically applied to goods vehicles; the report did not provide details of any wider restrictions on private vehicles, public transport or pedestrian movement.
The Mahalaya event brought together music, dance, public performances, lighting and aerial displays at a major sports venue. The traffic police restriction was the principal mobility measure identified in the report, with the notified 4 am to 4 pm window governing freight vehicle movement around the venue.
