Discusses developing complex for religious tourism
Monday, 22 October 2007
RAJSHAHI, Oct 21 (UNB): Following the demand of local people and the Hindu community for developing a complex for religious tourism at Taherpur, the site of instituting Durga Puja, government officials Saturday visited the spot.
There had been a demand for long that Taherpur be developed as a tourist spot to translate its religious values into economic benefit.
Rajshahi Divisional Commi-ssioner Shafiul Alam, Deputy Commissioner Khalilur Rahman and Police Super Didar Ahmed, Bagmara UNO Habibur Rahman and Durgapur UNO Syeda Jebunnesa Talukder visited the Taherpur river-port municipality where the festival is being celebrated at seven mandaps, including the site of the temple where it was introduced.
They talked with Taherpur Pourasava chairman Abu Nayeem Shamsur Rahman and local community leaders, including Puja Committee president Shyamal Saha and secretary Kartik Saha and academic Narayan Chandra Saha to examine the potential of Taherpur as a pilgrim place and tourist spot.
Sources said the Divisional Commissioner wanted to know if they would agree to have some infrastructures developed under government initiative to set up a "complex" for tourists.
The Hindu community leaders welcomed the proposal and urged the government to take initiative for preserving the religious and historic area.
In the present-day perspective, the venue of incarnation of goddess Durga and the start of her ceremonious worship at Taherpur in this district holds a good prospect of attracting tourists, the community leaders said.
Last June, officials of Bangladesh Parjatan Corpora-tion had visited the site and gathered information about the origin of Durga puja from elderly Brahmin priests and relevant annals.
According to the Hindu mythology, goddess Durga appeared in the midst of the commoners following the prayer of King Kansa Narayan. Marking the occasion, the first Durga worship was held at the palace of the king of Taherpur in the month of Aswin in the Bengali year 887 (1480 AD).
According to lore, Ram, elder son of King Dasharat, had offered the puja at a different time to seek blessings from the deity to save people from the repression and misrule of Lanka Raj Ravan.
But formal Durga puja as the autumnal festival started off from Taherpur and, ever since, Hindu devotees hold the puja across the subcontinent in Aswin.
As the story goes, Raj Pundit Ramesh Shastri was the first priest to conduct Durga puja when it was introduced at Taherpur.
Meanwhile, Durga Puja was being observed across the district in a festive mode as 289 mandaps were set-up this year.
There had been a demand for long that Taherpur be developed as a tourist spot to translate its religious values into economic benefit.
Rajshahi Divisional Commi-ssioner Shafiul Alam, Deputy Commissioner Khalilur Rahman and Police Super Didar Ahmed, Bagmara UNO Habibur Rahman and Durgapur UNO Syeda Jebunnesa Talukder visited the Taherpur river-port municipality where the festival is being celebrated at seven mandaps, including the site of the temple where it was introduced.
They talked with Taherpur Pourasava chairman Abu Nayeem Shamsur Rahman and local community leaders, including Puja Committee president Shyamal Saha and secretary Kartik Saha and academic Narayan Chandra Saha to examine the potential of Taherpur as a pilgrim place and tourist spot.
Sources said the Divisional Commissioner wanted to know if they would agree to have some infrastructures developed under government initiative to set up a "complex" for tourists.
The Hindu community leaders welcomed the proposal and urged the government to take initiative for preserving the religious and historic area.
In the present-day perspective, the venue of incarnation of goddess Durga and the start of her ceremonious worship at Taherpur in this district holds a good prospect of attracting tourists, the community leaders said.
Last June, officials of Bangladesh Parjatan Corpora-tion had visited the site and gathered information about the origin of Durga puja from elderly Brahmin priests and relevant annals.
According to the Hindu mythology, goddess Durga appeared in the midst of the commoners following the prayer of King Kansa Narayan. Marking the occasion, the first Durga worship was held at the palace of the king of Taherpur in the month of Aswin in the Bengali year 887 (1480 AD).
According to lore, Ram, elder son of King Dasharat, had offered the puja at a different time to seek blessings from the deity to save people from the repression and misrule of Lanka Raj Ravan.
But formal Durga puja as the autumnal festival started off from Taherpur and, ever since, Hindu devotees hold the puja across the subcontinent in Aswin.
As the story goes, Raj Pundit Ramesh Shastri was the first priest to conduct Durga puja when it was introduced at Taherpur.
Meanwhile, Durga Puja was being observed across the district in a festive mode as 289 mandaps were set-up this year.