As the winter begins to fade and spring sets in, it is time for children and adults alike to invoke the blessings of Goddess Saraswati for achieving excellence in education, fine arts and other activities. 'Basant Panchami' is celebrated in all Bengali homes with piety. On January 28, the Sarjapur Outer Ring Road Bengali Association (SORRBA) celebrated its fourth 'Saraswati Puja' with much pomp and gaiety at the ALT College on Sarjapur Main Road for the Bengali and the cosmopolitan community in the vicinity of the Sarjapur Outer Ring Road.
The puja started at 10.30 am and after the completion of 'pushpanjali', the ceremony of 'Hathe Khori' began for toddlers. It was performed by the priest who helps the children write their first alphabets and seek the blessings of the Goddess as they are inducted into the world of formal education.
The puja ceremony was enthusiastically attended by people of all ethnicity, who joined hands to complete the preparations and arrangements. Following the pooja, 'Prasadam' and 'Bhog' was served to all present. In between the children enjoyed some funfair kind of delights like horse ride, balloon art and merry go round. The evening saw children put up a cultural programme for the entertainment of the audience.
General secretary of SORRBA Paromita Sarkar said that our commitment is to inculcate our customs and traditions in our little ones and building homogeneity across communities by celebrating events like Durga Pooja, Saraswati Pooja and Lakshmi Pooja.

--CITYPLUS NEWSDESK

.