Blast casualty: footfalls fall in Puja pandals, Ramlilas

Aneesha MathurPosted: Oct 09, 2008 at 2350 hrs IST

New Delhi, October 8 From the Durga Puja pandals to the usually open-air festivity of Ramlilas, and from the upscale malls of South Delhi to the alleys of Daryaganj, the common element missing from the party is the crowd.

The blasts, it seems, have found another victim: Delhi’s spirit. Sharda, 57, who travels from Jamnagar in Gujarat to sell junk jewellery at Kali Mandir pandal in Chittaranjan Park every year, says “something” is missing in the celebrations this year. He cannot pin it down to any reason in particular, but “even yesterday there were not as many people as you would normally see on Ashtami at this pandal. Even those seemed to be looking around themselves — people sure are enjoying themselves; just that it’s a little different this time round.”

But Sonali Mukherji, a volunteer at the pandal, puts the attendance at normal — “like every other year”. She says, “The nominal drop is because there is no weekend during the Pujas this year. There must be about 6,000 people here already, and more should come for aarti at 7 pm.”
The Navratri period is normally lean for restaurants, and it’s no different this time, says Moi, the hostess at Piccadelhi in Connaught Place. Manoj, the manager, says the restaurant has reduced its stock of non-vegetarian fare and liquor for the Navratri period. “Sales would probably pick up from tomorrow; we expect people to go out more,” he adds.

Pawan, of Mithas restaurant in Daryaganj, blames the blasts, and the scare in their aftermath, for the drop in sales. “We have a special Navratri thali which is doing alright but not many people have come out since the blasts,” he says.

The movie theatres have also seen an alarming drop in footfalls. Officials at PVR Plaza in Connaught Place say though ticket sales usually drop to about 50 per cent of capacity during the Puja-Navratri period “but sales have really slumped since the blasts”.

Pawan Kumar, who runs a paan shop in the PVR Anupam complex in Saket, says, “People do not sit around in the complex anymore. Sales have thus taken a huge hit.”

The Ramlilas, too, have not escaped. Even at the popular Ramlila Grounds in Daryaganj, attendance has dropped significantly. The joint military secretary of the Indraprastha volunteer board, Satish Verma, says minimum attendance at the grounds has been around 50,000 this year. “Usually, the number on any given day during Ramlila is more than 80, 000,” Verma says. He says many people who usually come from far-flung parts of the Capital have given it a miss this year.

Hope still floats, though. “Maybe more people will come later this evening and tomorrow,” Verma says with pursed lips.
(With inputs from Akshay Kumar V and Pallavi Jain) source: expressindia.com

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Paschim Vihar Durga Puja pandal emerges winner

8 Oct 2008, 0000 hrs IST, Tanvi,TNN
NEW DELHI: Ashtami on Tuesday saw the culmination of Durga Devi Namastute, TOI's contest for the best puja pandals and idols in NCR. Over a hundred pandals across the city had participated. While some chose to stick to the traditional themes, there were many who did not hesitate experimenting with new concepts.

From trying to capture an Egyptian look, depicting Pharoahs, to incorporating the British style of architecture, to even having a facade resembling the summer abode of the Maharaja of Tripura, the puja samitis played with varying themes this year. The idols too wore contrasting looks. Many were in the Ek-Chala style, graced by traditional `Sola' ornaments and some had the idols displayed separately. Many got their artisans and material all the way from Kolkata, Mumbai and even Allahbad.

A piece of art can only be appreciated by artistes themselves and therefore, the pandals were evaluated by two very renowned artists Sudip Roy, a painter, and Prateek Chowdhury, a sitarist. Given the meticulous execution of the concepts and ideas by the organizers, the choice of winners was not easy for the judges.

"The karigars surely have worked very hard to come up with these beautiful and magnificent pandals. I really liked the ones which had kept it simple. Another important observation about this year's pandals was that there were many, who along with the festivities and celebrations, made it a point to give out a message to the society as well,'' said Sudip Roy.

There were a number of parameters based on which the pandals and idols were evaluated foremost being the design and decoration.

It was a close call between the pandals of the Paschim Vihar Bengali Association and the Milani Cultural & Welfare Association (MCWA), Mayur Vihar. However, considering the technical aspects, Paschim Vihar, with its intricate detailed artwork, grabbed the award. It took 46 days of painstaking work for 18 expert karigars, all from Kolkata, to complete the decorations of this pandal, which portrays a temple with fine images of gods and goddesses carved out of sea-shells carpeting the entire structure.

"It has an exquisite design and almost looks real. The craftsmanship is of superior quality. What I value the most is the fact that it is sober and not glaring to the eye in any way,'' said Prateek Chowdhury.

The MCWA, too, stood out with its unusual theme based on the history of the newspaper. It required enormous research into history for the organizers to highlight and display all the milestones achieved since the first newspaper was born.

Ashtami was also the day when thousands poured in to the pandals to feast on `Bhog'. Most Bengalis take a break from work and enjoy the afternoon with family on Day eight and nine day of the puja. "Ashtami's bhog draws huge crowds. The food is also prepared keeping this in mind. Our pandal was visited by more than 5,000 people for bhog,'' said Debashis Saha, head of the organising committee at Matri Mandir, Safdarjung Enclave, which bagged the third prize for the best pandal.

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Durga Puja pandal in east Delhi

8 Oct 2008, 0000 hrs IST,TNN

NEW DELHI: A Durga Puja pandal in east Delhi is making news with a very new theme the evolution of newspaper journalism. The Puja pandal in east Del hi's Mayur Vihar Phase I has made a unique tribute to the history of newspapers in their celebrations.

Tracing the evolution of print journalism from the Roman times to the present day, the pandal by Milan Cultural and Welfare Association has set up huge display boards of various newspapers in and around the world that have helped shape the minds of readers. Prominent newspapers in India like Anand Bazaar Patrika to Eenadu are also on display.

Further, the pandal also dwells on lesser-known facts of the newspaper world. For instance, the world's first daily was a German publication in the 16th century and the Bengal Gazette was the first English daily in the country.

Tapan Roy, president of the pandal committee, explained that their objective was to give a boost to India's traditional heritage by putting the limelight on newspapers and the impact they have had on the lives of readers.

"Last year, our pandal theme was on art, language and culture of Bengal and how it has evolved over the years. This year, we thought of making our theme more on literature and we finally decided on newspapers. Our effort has always been to focus our pandal themes on historical and mythological issues," explained Roy. The pandal is known in the neighbourhood for their unique themes and has won various awards, including the Times Durga Devi Namastute contest, for best pandal in the last few years.

Apart from big displays of Indian newspapers, the pandal has also acknowledged significant newspapers in other countries from Sweden, Russia, Denmark, Germany etc. "Through our themes we want to spread awareness in society. Lots of people ask us about our themes and how we decide on which one to promote every year and we clearly tell them that all our themes have a social message. We had a special team of experts, which carried out research on the evolution of newspapers, so we could put it up on display for visitors," added Roy.

Enthusiastic visitors, particularly children, were seen standing in front of the various display boards of newspapers like LA Times, London Gazette, Gentleman's Magazine and various papers in other languages to read up on their history and evolution. "This is the first time I have seen such an educational theme for a Durga Puja pandal. It gives us an insight to how newspapers have evolved over the ages to their present form today," said 12-year-old Tanima Chatterjee, a local resident of Mayur Vihar. source: times of india

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Dilshad Garden C R PARK New Delhi Durga Puja

Security stifles festive spirit...
7 Oct 2008, 0000 hrs IST, Sapna Verma,TNN
NEW DELHI: With the spectre of September 13 serial blasts still hanging over the city, unprecedented security arrangements have been made for the fe stival season. However, that only seems to have overshadowed the spirit of festivity in the city with several puja pandals saying there has been a reduction of nearly 30-40% in the footfalls.

"Long queues resulting from excessive security arrangement and a sense of insecurity have affected the number of people coming to the pujas. Though we are expecting at least 10,000 people every day, only 7,000 are turning up,'' said GP Sarkar from Dilshad Garden Durga Puja Committee.

Even those who are turning up are being subjected to rigorous checking and frisking and long standing customs of carrying `bhog' to the puja and heading back with prasad are also being put through scanner. "Puja used to be a time for fun and revelry. This time the arrangement is such that we feel we are entering a high security zone. I was shocked when an empty tiffin box was also not allowed inside in which I always carry back prasad for my old mother,'' said Partho Dey, a resident of CR Park.

Between people dressed in their ‘pujo' best, one can also now spot sniffer dogs and plain clothed policemen, keeping a strict vigil on the crowd, with walkie-talkies in their hands. The ministry of home affairs has sanctioned additional forces, including armed paramilitary, that have been deployed across the city and the samitis too have enhanced the security by installing CCTVs and roping in the services of private guards. Even the idols of the Goddess were not spared as they were routinely being checked with metal detectors.

Delhi Police spokesperson ACP Rajan Bhagat said: "Sniffer dogs, bomb detection squad, extra police force, commandos and PCR vans have been deployed. We are working closely with the committees and have asked them to abide by the guidelines given to them.''

Most committees admit that it is very important to work in cooperation with the police. President of CR Park Durga Puja Committee, Suman Chatterjee, said: "We are using metal detectors, mobile scanners and CCTVs. Security guards have been directed to scan each and every unidentified object. We have already informed the visitors to not carry baggage and if someone still does so, we are not allowing them inside. No compromises this time.'' source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

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Durga Puja in Delhi India

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New Delhi, October 05 The five-day Durga Puja festivities began on Sunday with Maha-shashti. Newsline did a survey of major pandals in the city and found that on the first day of Puja, most pandals in the city saw heavy security arrangements.
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C R PARK (Kali Mandir)
The famous Kali Mandir in C R Park is an important centre of convergence during Durga Puja. This year, special arrangements have been made for security with Delhi Police, Civil Defence and Home Guard personnel stationed at the temple. Six CCTV cameras have been installed at various points in the temple. Sniffer dogs are also being used for the first time.
“The temple is elevated, which provides it with a natural boundary. We have also taken care to ensure there are two separate entries for residents and the general public,” Anita Haldar, reception committee co-convenor at Kali Mandir, said.

C R PARK (K BLOCK)
The pandal at K block, famous for winning the award for best idol the last three years in a row, has chosen a historical theme from Harappa and Mohenja-Daro to do up its idols. Security arrangements here include personnel from the Delhi Police and private security guards. Four machans have been set up at four points of the pandal. In addition to barricades, there are separate entries for residents and the general public, with a separate exit. Provision has also been made for an emergency exit, along with a special entry for VIPs.

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C R PARK (B BLOCK)
Security has been tightened at the B block pandal with more than 125 private security guards and more than 50 personnel of the Delhi Police. “Apart from eight CCTV cameras, four machans have also been set up in the four corners of the pandal,” Inspector Sanjay Kumar Singh said. Besides the main entry, there are separate entries for volunteers and vendors.
Significantly, this year the Durga Puja committee of B Block has decided not to call any crowd pulling celebrities. “We have called performers from Kolkata instead to avoid any rush beyond our capacity,” Ashim Banerjee, organising committee president, said.

MINTO ROAD PUJA SAMITI

“We have made security arrangements as per the crowd expected and will strengthen the arrangements if more people come in,” Duty Officer Bodh Raj said. Security has been reinforced with a machan opposite the main gate, 10 CCTV cameras, four hand-held metal detectors and two doorframe detectors. There are two points for entry and exit, with an emergency exit...also in place. “We have invited ex-contestants from the Sare Ga Ma Pa music show and performers from Kolkata,” D K Bose, samiti president, said. ... source: http://www.indianexpress.com

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C R Park Durga Puja New Delhi

C.R. Park Durga Puja Samity
"B-Block"
B-379 Chittaranjan Park
New Delhi – 110019

Mela Ground Durga Puja Samiti
D-687 Chittaranjan Park
New Delhi – 110019
Tel: +91-11-6462671

Saptarshi
D-712 C.R. Park, New Delhi - 110019
Tel: +91-11-6471753, 6427434


Chittaranjan Park

Chittaranjan Park is a neighbourhood in Southern New Delhi. It set up in the late 1960s to house Bengali migrants from what was then East Pakistan and soon after became Bangladesh, explaining its original name, EPDP Colony, where EPDP stands for East Pakistan Displaced Person(s).

The neighbourhood is divided into blocks, originally running from A-K, to which several blocks, called M,N, O, K-1, K-2, Pocket 40 ( referred to as Navapalli) and Pocket 52 (referred to as Dakhinpalli ) were added in the early 1990s. The spine of the colony is Bipin Chandra Pal Marg. Institutions of note are a branch of the Raisina Bengali School, Shiv Mandir, Bangiya Samaj and Chittaranjan Bhawan.

Chittaranjan Park is bordered by Kalkaji, Greater Kailash-II, Greater Kailash-I, and Alaknanda.

Chittaranjan Park is also home to one of the city's main markets for freshwater fish, an integral part of Bengali cuisine, a large Kali temple, several cultural centres,four big markets specialising in Bengali sweets and as well as numerous stalls selling Calcutta style street food - chops, cutlets, etc.

Chittaranjan Park remains a major centre of Bengali cultural life in New Delhi,the best part is it's evening life in the markets and on the steets people doing "aadda"favourite bengali past time, with several Durga Puja celebrations renowned throughout the city for their elaborate pandals. The major Durga Puja celebrations are B Block, Shiv Mandir, Co-operative Ground, Mela Ground, and Navapalli (Pocket 40). Chittaranjan Bhawan and Bipin Pal Bhawan regularly host performances of Bengali theatre and music, which are also occasionally held in the Shiv/Kali Mandir. The week of Durga Puja sees performances by well-known artistes and troupes from West Bengal and Bangladesh.

The neighbourhood is still largely the preserve of Bengalis, though not all of them are necessarily displaced persons or their descendants, since the status of the neighbourhood as a centre of Bengali life in Delhi has led to its being a magnet for many non-refugee Bengalis. In addition, rising property prices and a prime location in the heart of South Delhi have led to an influx of people from other linguistic communities, so that the neighbourhood is now ethnically more diverse than before.

Notable residents include management guru and owner of IIPM Arindam Chaudhary, novelist Upamanyu Chatterjee, journalist Swapan Dasgupta, sometime Member of Parliament Nitish Sengupta, renowned Kathak dancer Saswati Sen, and included, in the years preceding her death, dacoit-turned-politician Phoolan Devi, Pranshu Ghosh renowned theatre actor. Shantanu Moitra Bollywood Music Director who fell in the limelight with his scores in Pareenita, Lage Raho Munna Bhai and others.

Domestic Airport is 17 km from Chittaranjan Park. International Airport (IGI) is 22 km from Chittaranjan Park. Nizamuddin Railway station is approximately 9 km from Chittaranjan Park When complete in 2010, the Nehru Place stop on the (yet unnamed) south-east line of the Delhi Metro will be walking distance from most of Chittaranjan Park. source: wikipedia

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Durga Puja in New Delhi

Tanya Ashreena and Madhurima Das, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, October 04, 2008

Eid came but not the shoppers. The stock of Eid gifts in markets like Sarojini Nagar and Karol Bagh remained unsold. And now, shopkeepers fear, the goddess Lakshmi will not smile on them this Diwali. “Business is down by half,” says Ashok Randhawa, President of Sarojini Nagar Market Traders’ Association.

Before the festive season, shopkeepers stock up on jewellery and clothing, anticipating good profits. “Now, not only will they have to sell their wares at discounted rates after the festive season, but a lot of their stock could go unsold, as these things go out of fashion really fast,” says Randhawa.

Shopping malls have also recorded a fall in the number of visitors. Ansal Plaza and Select City Walk, which get up to 10,000 visitors on Sundays, have experienced a 40 per cent drop in footfalls after September 13. Likewise, business at food courts and eating joints is suffering.
On their part, shoppers say they would rather be safe than sorry. “Since the blasts, I have stopped visiting crowded markets,” says Priyanka Chakravarty, a JNU student. “Every time I step out of my office to visit a market, I make it a point to call home and inform my parents,” says Sonya Saxena, a banker who works in Connaught Place.

There has been no big release in the last three weeks, but a near-empty hall on ‘first day, first show’ is unusual by any standard. Yet, this has become the norm in the Capital ever since the serial blasts.

The reason is obvious. As Rakesh Negi, a graphic artist and movie buff, puts it: “I used to go to the movies every week. But now I am scared. My friends are also reluctant. I haven’t seen even one movie since the blasts.”

Normally, occupancy falls drastically a day after a terror strike. But this time, it is taking too long to climb back. Even popular cinema halls have been recording occupancy rates of around 40 per cent. “We have not had an occupancy rate of more than 20 per cent since the blasts,” says Sonam Grover of Satyam Cinemas.

As places of worship and festive celebrations have been targets of terror in the past, even temples, Durga Puja pandals and Ram Lila grounds are not free of the post-blasts panic. Fearing for their safety, people are reluctant to take part in the festivities.

On Friday, Hanuman Mandir and Jhandewalan Mandir had unusually thin attendance, considering the Navratras are on.

“Ever since the blasts, few people have been visiting,” said a member of the Jhandewalan Mandir committee, who did not wish to be named.

Durga Puja is to start on Monday, but organisers are already expecting a low turnout. “After listening to the security concerns of people, I am expecting a less than usual turnout,” said Utpal Ghosh, president of Navapalli Durga Puja Samiti, CR Park.

Several puja samitis have issued circulars to their members, asking them to cooperate with security checks. Some have requested members not to carry bags or bottles . The Delhi Rohini Durga Puja Samiti has asked visitors to carry their belongings in plastic bags to facilitate checking.

“We plan to wind up celebrations by 10 p.m.,” said a member. “We are hiring extra guards for keeping an eye on visitors,” said Alok Majumdar, member of the Agrani Durga Puja Samiti of Rohini. source: Hindustan Times

India’s export ban rattles food market

In a severe criticism of India’s handling of global food crisis, the US has said the export bans by New Delhi will harm its south Asian neighbours and drive up prices rattling the international markets, reports PTI. “Indian government’s decision to impose certain export bans on non-Basmati rice and edible oils has rattled international market. “We can only adequately address this crisis if we discourage continued use of export controls that will harm India’s neighbours and drive up world food prices,” US Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Christopher A Padilla said here yesterday. He said while export bans are designed to increase short-term food security, (by) imposing the restrictions these policies make the situation worse. He said export restrictions take food off the global market, drive prices higher, and discourage farmers from responding to market forces and investing in future production. As two of the world’s largest producer of agricultural goods, the US and India should refrain from the use of export quotas, “which will only exacerbate food shortages and inflate prices,” Padilla said, adding “export quotas don’t work. In fact, they make things worse.” He said India can shoulder international responsibilities in dealing with the global food crisis. Source: Assam Tribune