State's only one-day Durga Puja observed in Dhenua, Burnpur, on the day of Mahalaya

At atime when thousands of people all over Bengal and the country were busy with the end of Pitripokkho and Tarpan, some hundreds of residents and visitors were involved in celebrating a one-day Durga Puja on the day of Mahalaya, in all likelihood the only such Puja to be celebrated in the state.

- DEBAJYOTI CHAKRABORTY

Not far from the banks of River Damodar, where many had congregated since early morning to perform rituals forthe sake of their forefathers, the residents of Dhenua Village near Burnpur in West Burdwan celebrated Durga Puja, combining all five days into one.

This unique festival, better knownasthe Dhenua Sarbojonin Durgotsay, has been organised on the day of Mahalaya every year for the past 48 years. Heldatthe Kali Krishna Ashram in this nondescript village near the riverside off Burnpur steel township, the residents and the many visitors from surrounding areas strongly believe in the origins of the Puja.