Saraswati Puja, a cornerstone festival for the Hindu community in Bangladesh celebrated with enthusiasm and religious fervour across the country on Monday.
Saraswati Puja or Basant Panchami falls on the fifth Tithi of the Bengali month of Maagh each year when Hindus worship goddess Saraswati to mark the coming of spring.
Dedicated to Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom and knowledge, the festival holds special significance for students and educational institutions. Hindus gather to perform puja in educational institutions and temples, seeking blessings for enlightenment and learning.
The President of Bangladesh Mohammed Shahabuddin and Chief Adviser of Interim Government Professor Muhammad Yunus have extended their warm wishes to the Hindu community on the occasion of Saraswati Puja.
Traditionally, children are introduced to education and learning on the day of Saraswati Puja, and this ritual is called “Hatekhori”.
The students, in particular, seek the blessings of Goddess Saraswati in their pursuit of knowledge, art, music and culture.
Major Hindu temples, schools, colleges, universities and other educational institutions stage the festival with traditional gaiety and religious fervour.
The gorgeous Saraswati Puja has been arranged on the premises of Jagannath Hall of Dhaka University, where a vast number of devotees and crowds throng to perform the religious rituals and visit the pandals circled on the playground of the university.
