SHILLONG: The four-day Durga Puja festivities in the State concluded on a peaceful note on Monday afternoon with the immersion of idols of the Goddess at Wahumkhrah.
No incident of violence was reported from any part of the State, including in Garo Hills, except for the lone incident of lobbing of petrol bombs at a puja pandal at Umsning on the first day of the festival on Friday last.
Adequate security measures were taken by the State Government to ensure that the festival ended on a peaceful note. There was huge presence of police personnel in various puja mandaps and throughout the city and elsewhere in the State.
Though there was thin attendance of devotees on the first day of the festival, but the crowd swelled at the puja pandals on the second and third day.
Chief Minister Dr Mukul Sangma and Home Minister Roshan Warjri, among others, visited different puja pandals in the city and greeted people on the occasion.
On Monday, the day of the immersion, elaborate arrangements were in place amidst various directives of the district administration to ensure peaceful and proper immersion of the idols.
The entire immersion proceeding was concluded by late Monday afternoon unlike previous years when it used to continue till late in the evening.
As a preventive measure, devotees were not allowed to get down from the vehicles at the immersion ghat to prevent chaos and disorder.
DGP PJP Hanaman and other senior police officials were seen camping in Polo area to oversee the law and order arrangement during the immersion.
Meanwhile, East Khasi Hills SP M Kharkrang has thanked the various stakeholders including the Central Puja Committee, Rangbah Shnong, NGOs and the general people for their cooperation in peaceful conclusion of the festival.
In Tura, the Durga Puja celebrations, concluded on a peaceful note with no untoward incidents being reported from any part of the town, informed our Tura correspondent.
On Monday, the immersion procession kicked off from Dobasipara culminating as usual at the Babupara Immersion Ghat. The procession which began at around 5 in the evening was mostly attended by women devotees regardless of which puja committee they belonged to.
However the main attraction of the day was provided by the Der Mile Puja Committee which presented a street play in traditional and special attire which added colour to the whole procession.
The district administration also saw to it that elaborate arrangements in terms of security were made to ensure that there were no disruptions to the celebrations.