Shillong, October 11: Four days of revelry and merriment in Meghalaya came to an end today as idols of goddess Durga and her four children were immersed by devotees in rivers across the state on Bijoya Dashami. The banks of the Wah Umkhrah river in Shillong wore a festive look as puja organisers came in colourful processions reverberating with the sounds of drums. Hundreds of devotees, including the young, came together to gently immerse the idols into the river and bid them farewell with moist eyes.
Around 70 idols of goddess Durga were immersed in different parts of the Greater Shillong area. A total of 59 idols were immersed in the main immersion ghat near Polo grounds.
The immersion ceremony of the four day Durga Puja festival concluded amidst display of Vijaya greetings, procession by devotees along the major thoroughfares of the city besides a sense of grief because of the departure of mother goddess for another long year.
The scene was electrifying as the young and old, mothers and daughters danced to the drumbeat of the dhakis whereas policeman were seen guiding them to the immersion ghat, Polo. This ghat has been ideally prepared by the Central Puja Committee (CPC) for the immersion and it has been a tradition that CPC after the immersion cleanse the river from debris that accumulates.
The lined up trucks with the idols of goddess Durga and her children with devotees singing and dancing makes one emotional. The drummers, mostly sourced from West Bengal and Assam, played different tunes to enthuse the immersion procession.
It is indeed commendable that they continue to beat the drum for four long days without getting tired.The day ended with burning the effigy of Ravana at Polo.
