Patna is preparing for Shardiya Navratri, which begins on October 11, with temples, markets and around 1,500 Durga Puja pandals getting ready for the nine-day festival. Fire-safety inspections, crowd-management measures, electrical checks and municipal sanitation arrangements are being put in place ahead of the expected movement of devotees across the city.
The festival will begin with Kalash Sthapna and prayers to Maa Shailputri. Vijayadashami will be observed on October 21. Temples are being cleaned and decorated, while priests and temple committees are arranging worship areas and puja materials for visitors expected from the first morning of the festival.
Sayan Kunal, secretary of Mahavir Mandir, said the temple’s prayer service would begin at 9pm on Sunday and that arrangements had been completed. At Naulakha Durga Mandir near New Secretariat, 69-year-old Nageshwar Baba is expected to continue a long-standing ritual involving 21 bronze pitchers filled with water balanced on his chest. Vijay Kumar Yadav, organiser of the temple’s Navratri celebrations, said the ritual would continue for nine days alongside a strict waterless fast.
Another major devotional centre, Akhand Vindhyavasini Mandir in a narrow lane near Golghar, is preparing for an influx of worshippers. The temple is known for an akhand jyot, or continuously burning lamp, maintained with ghee and mustard oil. According to the temple’s tradition, the flame was brought from Kamakhya temple in Assam in 1914 by Vishwanath Tiwari.
The festival is also driving activity in Patna’s markets. Shops and roadside stalls are stocking red chunris, coconuts, kalash, earthen pots, incense sticks, camphor, roli, flowers and other puja items. Fruits and food products used during fasting are also in demand. Mukesh Sah, a shopkeeper at Machhuatoli, said customers were buying decorative materials, lights, flowers and garlands along with ritual supplies.
The largest operational challenge will be managing the city’s temporary festival infrastructure. The fire services department said Patna would have around 1,500 Durga Puja pandals this year, including nearly 100 large installations. Organisers have been asked to correct safety shortcomings and comply with fire-safety guidelines before celebrations begin. Checks include safe electrical connections, clear emergency exits and arrangements for managing crowds at major venues.
Patna Municipal Corporation is preparing sanitation measures and designated immersion facilities for the period after the celebrations. These arrangements are intended to manage festival waste and support orderly idol immersion. With temples, markets and pandals entering the final preparation stage, authorities and organisers are focused on completing safety and visitor facilities before the first rituals begin on October 11.
