Pandal Durga Puja in Calcutta based on Cyclone Amphan
Calcutta:
The pandals and idols of Goddess Durga Puja in the City of Joy never fail to amaze. Even in a pandemic year, artists and idol makers have conceptualized revelations. If you look from a distance, this pandal from the Durga Puja community in Calcutta will appear as a pile of crooked door and window grills, torn rags, broken doors and plastic sheeting, commonly used by sidewalk dwellers, such as roof over their heads. But wait, it’s actually a Cyclone Amphan-themed Durga Puja pandal that left a trail of devastation in Calcutta and its suburbs in early June.
Cyclone Amphan, one of the worst storms on the Bay of Bengal in years, killed more than 12 people in West Bengal. The powerful cyclone destroyed thousands of homes and left the authorities scrambling to clear roads and restore basic amenities for weeks. And it has been a struggle for rescue personnel to mount relief efforts amid the coronavirus crisis.
The cyclone hit the coast of Bengal with wind gusts of up to 185 km / h. After assessing the situation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that “the whole nation is on Bengal’s side and no stone will be left behind” to help those affected. Mr. Modi had also visited the state. According to Mamata Banerjee’s government, Amphan’s impact was “worse than the coronavirus pandemic” and claimed damage from the cyclone could be in the order of Rs 1 lakh crore.
West Bengal is experiencing a very discreet Durga Puja this year due to the fallout from the cyclone, heavy rains caused by several depressions in the Bay of Bengal and of course the coronavirus pandemic.
