People throng puja pandals in Assam

Guwahati: Thousands of people, many of them from the Muslim community, thronged the Durga Puja pandals in Guwahati to admire the intricate decorations and the beautiful idols.
Moinuddin Ali, a roadside vegetable vendor in the city’s oldest area Uzan Bazar was in a hurry to wind up his business for Saturday, even selling his stock at 50 per cent discount, since he wanted to go “pandal-hopping”.
“To me, Hindu or Muslim does not matter. All religions and festivals are the same. I want to be a part of the fun and festive spirit in the city,” Moinuddin said.
Five other vendors sitting with him were also in a hurry to see the “beautifully crafted Durga idols in the various Puja mandaps (pandals)”.
It was the same with daily wage-earner Fayek Ahmed, who along with his wife and five children, came out to join the revelry and throng innovatively designed and illuminated mandaps.
Fayek said, not just him, but many people from his locality were also visiting the pandals.
One of the main Puja pandal designers in Guwahati and winner of the National and President’s award Nuruddin Ahmed is from the community. Ahmed considers himself “a devotee of beauty” and has no interest in ‘communalism’ or ‘secularism’.
He says that he is happy that visitors are appreciating his 55-foot-high Lord Ganesh at the Bishnupur Puja pandal.
“For me religion, caste or creed do not matter at all. I think this is the real sense of being an Indian in Assam, Puja is a celebration of joy and happiness. We mingle with all and everybody is here to make it a memorable one,” he told reporters. (PTI)