The five-day Sharadiya Durga Puja festivities ended Wednesday with the immersion of Goddess Durga idols at Laboni Point on Cox’s Bazar beach, drawing an estimated 300,000–400,000 people, according to organisers.
The immersion ceremony, one of the country’s largest of its kind, began on Bijoya Dashami afternoon, the final day of the Hindu festival. Devotees bid farewell to the goddess amid traditional rituals, including vermilion offerings, drumbeats and ululation.
Idols were brought to the beach from different upazilas of Cox’s Bazar district, as well as from Lama and Naikhongchhari in Bandarban. Organisers estimated that at least 400 idols were immersed at the beach. Idols from Chakaria and Pekua were immersed in the Matamuhuri River.
The ceremony created a festive atmosphere across several kilometres around Laboni Point, with local residents and tourists from different districts joining in the celebrations.
The beach and other tourist attractions, including Sugandha, Himchhari and Inani, also saw increased visitor numbers during the Durga Puja and Prabarana Purnima holidays.
Abul Kashem Sikder, president of the Cox’s Bazar Hotel and Guesthouse Owners Association, said many hotel rooms were booked in advance from Wednesday through Saturday.
He said more than 20 star-rated hotels had nearly 100 per cent occupancy, while around 90 per cent of rooms at mid-range hotels, guesthouses and cottages were booked.
More than 500 hotels, resorts and guesthouses in the town can accommodate around 168,000 people overnight, he added.
Cox’s Bazar Deputy Commissioner Md A Mannan announced that the administration had implemented necessary measures to ensure tourists’ safety and facilitate a peaceful immersion ceremony. Several mobile courts, led by executive magistrates, were also operating to prevent tourist harassment and ensure proper services.
Uday Shankar Pal Mithu, acting president of the district Puja Celebration Council, said the immersion ceremony was completed without any untoward incidents, with the administration’s cooperation.
The chief guest at the ceremony, State Minister for Land and Chittagong Hill Tracts Affairs Barrister Mir Mohammad Helal Uddin, said communal harmony has long been a tradition in Bangladesh and called on everyone to work together to preserve it.
He also stressed the importance of ensuring the safety of domestic and foreign tourists and maintaining a pleasant environment in Cox’s Bazar, the country’s leading tourist destination.
This year, Durga Puja was celebrated at 324 puja venues across Cox’s Bazar district. Of them, 155 held idol worship, while 169 observed the festival through ghata puja, in which a sacred pot represents the goddess.
As the festivities ended, devotees prayed for Goddess Durga’s return next year, promising peace, harmony, prosperity, and the triumph of good over evil.
By Mohammad Morshed
Photo: Mohammad Morshed
