1. Weekend Brings Early Start To Puja
Pandal-hoppers thronged the streets through Saturday, Chaturthi on the Puja calendar. Mudiali in the south to Mohd Ali Park in the north to Sreebhumi in the east, the scene was the same everywhere.
The morning – or rather the pre-dawn hours – did show the day. Paramita Pal, an event manager, was taken aback when she was caught in a traffic jam on Rashbehari Avenue near Deshapriya Park at 2am on her way home from work. “It was raining steadily. Yet people parked their cars wherever they could on the main road and simply strode off with umbrellas to any of the three big pujas nearby.”
The Deshapriya Park puja was supposed to open in the afternoon but was forced to open early on public demand. “By 11am, there were close to 5,000 people at the gates. Police asked us to open without bothering about a formal inauguration,” said Sudipta Kumar, the secretary of the puja. “We must have had over a lakh visitors today.”
(Source: The Telegraph)
2. Titli Threat Blows Over, Revellers Make Most Of A Dry Panchami
An extended pre-Puja weekend and a dry Sunday, despite rain threats, brought lakhs of revellers out on a pandal-hopping spree on Panchami, rivalling the footfall usually recorded on Saptami or Ashtami. The surge had begun from Chaturthi, a Saturday, and as the rain eased off, revellers thronged the city streets from early Sunday morning. As the day progressed, the crowd continued to grow.
Standing near the entrance of Ekdalia Evergreen, minister and chief organiser Subrata Mukherjee kept a check on the continuous increase in crowd flow from early afternoon. “It seems like Saptami or Ashtami. Since Saturday, we have received more than double the number of visitors we had during this time last year. If such is the situation on Panchami, I wonder what will happen in the next few days,” said Mukherjee, adding that they have hired double the number of security guards compared to last year.
(Source: The Times Of India)
3. Cops Keep Shopping Hub Pavements Hawker-Free
In a special drive, the Kolkata Police and Kolkata Municipal Corporation special squads on Sunday started removing hawkers’ stalls from the Gariahat pavements. With revellers thronging the streets, and spilling on to the road because of blocked pavements, the drive was aimed at making pandal-hopping safer.
The Kolkata Police had earlier flagged their concerns to the KMC saying that from Sashthi to Dashami, the clogged pavements in Gariahat and Hatibagan need to be cleared. “Every year, we set up barricades to channel traffic along the pavements. This is imperative to allow uninterrupted vehicular movement during the Puja days. However, given the condition of the pavements in Gariahat and Hatibagan, attempting this would have been futile unless the sidewalk is cleared,” an officer said.
The KMC and police had met the hawkers’ representatives and impressed upon them the need to remove their stalls for the five Puja days.
(Source: The Times Of India)
4. Cry For Foreign Flights From Bagdogra
People of Siliguri have demanded introduction of flights to foreign countries, especially Nepal and Bangladesh, from Bagdogra airport following the Centre’s plan to launch services to six Asian countries from Guwahati.
Under the UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik) scheme, the Centre floated tenders for airline companies to run flights from Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Singapore, Bangkok (Thailand), Yangon (Myanmar), Dhaka (Bangladesh) and Kathmandu (Nepal).
“There was a demand from Assam to introduce more international flights from Guwahati to connect the neighbouring Asian countries. The Airports Authority of India has already published notices, seeking proposals from airlines interested in operating flights to these destinations from Guwahati,” said a source.
(Source: The Telegraph)
5. Bishop Talks Tough, Wants ‘Transparency’ In Schools
Probal Dutta, who was formally installed as the 20th bishop of the Kolkata Diocese of the Church of North India (CNI) on Sunday, plans to review the functioning of all schools under CNI, which includes some of the city’s most reputable institutions.
The idea is to “initiate reforms and usher in transparency” in its schools, according to a senior CNI official. Several eminent educationists have been sounded out to be a part of school managing committees. Among them are two former principals of a prominent city school who have also had stints at reputable educational institutions outside the city.
At an investiture ceremony in St Paul’s Cathedral on Sunday, Dutta – who is now the head of management committees of all schools under CNI –said: “The world is changing and excellence is the only key to success. We cannot lead schools and other institutions towards excellence unless we induct leading educationists. Many have happily shown interest.”
(Source: The Times Of India)
6. Of Festivity, Awareness And Joy Of Sharing
The gesture of sharing made the festival this year all the more purposeful for some individuals and organizations.
For this group of young doctors, the festival began on Saturday with children at an orphanage in Tangra run by CINI. The junior doctors gifted new clothes to the kids during a free medical camp. Members of Agnibha Foundation, named after a budding doctor who died during his internship at Bankura Medical College, also visited an old-age home on Sunday to spend time with the senior citizens, checking their health and giving away medicines. “This is also our way of rebuilding trust between doctors and patients. Starting this Puja we have plans to conduct medical camps and help people with their health issues in different localities,” said Dr Arpit Saha, a post graduate student of microbiology at SSKM Hospital.
(Source: The Times Of India)
7. Dance, Decor to Offset Flyers’ Check-In Rush
If you are flying out of Kolkata during Durga Puja, try to reach the terminal at least one and a half hours before the scheduled departure. And if you are flying in, be prepared for the rush at rest rooms and a longer wait for taxis. Though Kolkata airport is yet to reach its rated capacity, with enough room to accommodate the spurt in footfall during the Puja season, sources said sections of the airport could get choc-a-block during rush hours. But fliers will also be in for a treat, with the airport, as well as, specific airlines, lining up a host of entertainment options.
According to airport director Atul Dikshit, Kolkata airport is ready for the Puja rush when traffic volume shoots up. “We are currently handling 30,000 passenger arrivals daily. This figure can go up to 33,000-35,000 per day. That will not put a strain on the infrastructure,” he said.
While there is adequate space for passengers in the terminal, it is the services that will come under pressure, particularly cleanliness of rest rooms and retrieval of baggage trolleys. Dikshit assured that both would be taken care of to ensure that passengers landing in Kolkata do not have a bitter experience.
(Source: The Telegraph)
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