SourceKOLKATA, INDIA, October 12, 2004: After its resounding success last year, a group of Kolkatans have come together again to package the Durga Puja festival — the main festival of Bengalis the world over — as a major tourist attraction. Positioning Durga Puja — a five-day cultural fiesta revolving around the worship of Goddess Durga during her mythical sojourn on…
Source NEW JERSEY, USA October 21, 2004: The Dwarkadhish Temple is in the midst of a weeklong 10th anniversary celebration at its Washington Road site. To this point the celebration has been a success, with no complaints from residents or officials. Events will culminate this weekend, as thousands are expected at the temple Saturday, and a procession through town will…
Source DELHI, INDIA, October 22, 2004: A spirit of jollity pervaded the air as Dussehra, symbolizing the triumph of good over evil, was celebrated with traditional fervor in most parts of the country today. Effigies of king Ravana, his son Meghnath and brother Kumbhakaran blazed and crackled in fiery splendor at sundown marking the culmination of the ten-day festivities. In…
SourceKATHMANDU, NEPAL, October 22, 2004: According to Nepal Anubrat Samiti, a Kathmandu-based organization campaigning against animal sacrifices, over a million goats, buffaloes, chickens and other birds are sacrificed during the Dashain (Dussehra) festivities that last for nearly a fortnight. On the days of Mahashtami and Mahanavami – celebrated Thursday and Friday this year – animal sacrifices reach the peak since…
SourceDHAKA, BANGLADESH, October 22, 2004: The five-day Durga Puja, the largest religious festival of the Hindu community, ends today with the immersion of the icons of Gods and Goddesses, marking the Bijoya Dashami throughout the country. The Hindu community on Friday celebrated the fourth day of the festival with the observance of “Mohanabami” at different puja mandaps (temporary sidewalk temples)…
SourceBIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND, October 21, 2004: While the city council announced its Christmas events, scores of Hindus across Birmingham have been visiting temples and community centres to celebrate the nine-night religious festival of Navaratri. The festival began last Thursday and worshippers and visitors of all ages today described it as “spiritually enlightening.” The Birmingham-wide activities have also brought communities together and…
SourceKOLKATA, INDIA, October 18, 2004: If you are away from home in a foreign land and missing the Durga Puja festivities, don’t lose heart. Instead, get to a computer and connect to the Internet to find Goddess Durga with her entire ensemble waiting for you. Keeping in mind the millions of lonely and homesick Bengali hearts, who may be thousands…
SourceGUWAHATI, ASSAM, INDIA, October 18, 2004: Though Bodo militants have proposed a ceasefire in Assam, the state government is making massive security arrangements for the Durga Puja with the serial blasts that killed 60 people fresh in their memory. The state police have been put on maximum alert after interceptions of possible ULFA strikes during the festive season. “Its a…
SourceCALCUTTA, INDIA, October 15, 2004: Courtesy the festivals and the wedding season, flower prices have hit the roof. To top it all, came last week’s deluge, preceded by a long spell of rain in September, destroying more than half the state’s produce. “Around 13,490 metric tones of flowers, worth US$1.9 million, have perished in the deluge,” said Sudhanshu Sil, Member…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, October 14, 2004: After the government decided to allow crematoriums to become privatized, many of the previous problems disappeared. S.K. Sethi, secretary of Arya Samaj Lodhi Road Society, which took over Nigambodh Ghat a year ago, explains, “Earlier, there were frequent fights over the quality of wood sold for use in pyres. Relatives performing last rites were…