Demons go up in flames
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 1 — The effigies of legendary demons— Ravana, Meghanada and Kumbhkarna — met their fiery ends, marking the victory of good over evil at several venues in the city today.

The occasion symbolised the culmination of the 10-day long Ramlila, a dramatisation of the epic, Ramayana, at 21 different places in the city. Demons who withstood the ire of the forces of Lord Rama for several days proved to "too docile" in their make-believe death on Thursday.

Amidst strict security bandobast made by the police, hundreds of people thronged various venues where "Lord Rama " fired arrows to demolish the three demons amidst chants of "Siya pati Ramchandra ki jai ". Toy sellers did brisk business as there was a big demand for bows and arrows made of wood. Bright golden or silver coloured bows and arrows were brought by young boys.

In the city the three demons were set ablaze in different fashions. In Sector 37, arrows were fired simultaneously at the feet , stomach and face of Ravana, to bring an "instant death." On the other hand, in Sector 29 the head of the 70-foot-high Ravana fell down and could not be burned . Youngsters standing nearby took upon themselves the task of vanquishing the "head" with lathis and sticks.

In Sector 47, the managing committee had made sitting arrangements for members of the public. The artists of the Ramlila in Sectors 47, 45 and 43 were honoured by the local MP, Mr Satya Pal Jain. It was for the first time that Dashera was celebrated in Sector 46.

The organisers of Dashera in Sectors 43 and 17 took out separate processions.

In Mani Majra, Dashera was celebrated on the Chandigarh-Kalka road. This resulted in a traffic jam for more than two hours and inconvenience to members of the public. At several places, Dashera was celebrated with prior permission obtained from the authorities.

In Panchkula, Dashera was celebrated at five places. The effigies of the three demons were set afire in Sectors 5, 11, 15, 19 and at old Panchkula.

KULU, Oct 1 — The week-long Dasehra got off today with a colourful procession and rath yatra of Raghunath ji, the chief deity of the district.

More than 100 'devi' and 'devtas' accompanied the Lord Rama from Raghunathpur here to the historical Dhalpur ground, Mrs Rama Devi, Governor, was also present. She will later inaugurate the international folk dance festival at the Lal Chand Prarthi Kala Kendra and exhibitions of products of particularly local handicrafts at the Dhalpur ground.

A cultural troupe from Russia will perform tonight. Folk dance teams from Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Haryana, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh will participate in the dance festival. Folk singer Runa Laila will perform on Saturday. Singers Gurdas Mann, Jaspinder Narula, Vipin Sachdev Sonu Walia and Ravi Kanta Kashyap are added attractions. There is a big rush of foreign and domestic tourists this year.

Mr Maheshwar Singh, MP, and the chairman of the Dasehra committee said more than 150 deities had reached the Dasehra ground from all over the district.

The closing function of the week-long festivities will be presided over by Mr L.K. Advani, Home Minister, October 7.

NAHAN: Vijayadashmi was celebrated here on Thursday with traditional devotion and gaiety. Crowds of devotees throng temples of town to pay obeisance to goddess Durga and Lord Rama. Discourses were also held.

SANGRUR, Oct 1 — Dasehra was celebrated here with great enthusiasm and gusto today.

In a message, Mr Anirudh Tewari, Deputy Commissioner, and Mr Arpit Shukla, district police chief, urged the people to follow the path of truth as shown by Lord Rama.

The effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakaran and Meghnath were burnt to signify the victory of truth over evil.

PHILLAUR: Dasehra was celebrated with enthusiasm here on Thursday.

Effigies of Ravana, Meghnath and Kumbhakaran were burnt and crackers burst at various places.

HOSHIARPUR: At a function held in connection with Dasehra at the local Civil Hospital, the State Bank of India distributed fruits and sweets among patients and inmates of old-age homes.

Thousands of men, women and children gathered to see Ram Lila.

Effigies of Ravana and Kumbhakaran were burnt and fireworks displayed.

BATALA: A procession was taken out by volunteers of the local Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS). It terminated at Bal Vidya Niketan School.

Among those who participated are Mr Uma Shankar Sharma, a veteran RSS leader, Mr Jagdish Sahni, BJP MLA, and Mr Desraj Chachowalia, general secretary, BJP, Gurdaspur.

BATHINDA: Dasehra was celebrated at MSD School and Partap Nagar here by different organisations.

Mr Chiranji Lal Garg, state Food and Supply Minister, who presided over the function appealed to the people to follow the message of Lord Rama.

The effigies of Ravana and Kumbhakaran were burnt. A fire-work show was also organised.

ROPAR: Addressing a religious gathering on the occasion of Dasehra in the complex of Gurdwara Katalgarh Sahib at Chamkaur Sahib, Mr Karnail Singh Panjoli, a former secretary-general of the Youth Akali Dal, demanded that all six police districts of the state should be disbanded to merge the same in their respective revenue districts because terrorism no longer prevailed.

Mrs Upinderjit Kaur, Minister for Technical Education and Industrial Training, Punjab, paid tributes to Baba Ajit Singh and Baba Jujhar Singh sons of the Guru Gobind Singh.

Nihangs, led by Baba Santa Singh, and Baba Balbir Singh, took out processions.

AMRITSAR: Dasehra was celebrated near Durgiana Temple here on Thursday.

A large number of people thronged the grounds to see the effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakaran and Meghnath being burnt.

Leaders of various political parties and senior police and district administration officers joined in the celebrations.

The Assistant General Manager of the State Bank of India, Mr A.C. Sharma, distributed sweets among inmates of the children's hospital here.