Mangaluru Dasara from Oct 10: Janardhan Poojary
Mangaluru, September 9: Former union minister and senior Congress leader Janardhan Poojary who is instrumental in renovating the Kudroli Gokarnanatha Temple, said that as usual, the Mangaluru Dasara festival, being held from the Gokarnanatheshwara temple would start from Oct 10 and end on Oct 19.
Speaking to reporters here on Sunday, he said that it was expected that Deputy Chief Minister Dr G. Parameshwar would inaugurate the festival. On October 10, the idols of Nava Durge and goddess Sharada would be installed to begin the festivities. On October 19, Dasara celebration procession would be held. His son Santosh Poojary has been giving Rs 10 lakh for Mangaluru Dasara every year and this year also, he would give Rs 10 lakh and his younger son Deepak Poojary would give Rs 3 lakh. Many donors would also donate the amount to celebrate the festival in a grand manner, he said.
Kudroli temple was not restricted to any one community or religion. In fact, Muslims, Christians, Jains and others would also visit the temple and offer pooja and prayers. He had never asked funds from the government for the Dasara festival and this time also, he would not ask the funds. Without government’s funds, the celebration would be conducted in a grand manner, he said.
More tableaux
Last year, total 68 tableaux were participated in the Dasara procession. But this time, more tableaux were expected. Many organizations have approached the organizers and expressed their willingness to do more tableaux. Priority would be given to the tableaux which display the culture of the country, he said.
Leaders Harikrishna Bantwal, Urmila Ramesh Kumar, H.S Sairam, Devendra Poojary, Padmaraj, D.D Kattemar, Shekar Poojary, Chittaranjan and others were present.
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Charred body of teen found after fire destroys over 100 shanties in Delhi's Rithala
New Delhi (PTI): A massive fire swept through a cluster of shanties in Delhi's Rithala area early on Thursday, killing a 17-year-old girl and destroying more than 100 huts that left dozens of migrant families homeless.
Firefighters pulled out the charred body of the girl who was initially reported missing after the fire.
The blaze that was reported to authorities at 4.15 am spread rapidly through the densely packed shanties, triggering panic among residents who rushed out of their huts to escape the flames.
Residents said the shanty cluster was home to migrant labourers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and other states who worked as daily wage workers in nearby factories, construction sites and small establishments.
The Delhi Fire Services (DFS) launched a large-scale firefighting operation and deployed more than 18 fire tenders to control the blaze.
After the fire was brought under control, firefighters recovered the charred body of a teenage girl from the debris.
"Teams reached the location soon after the call was received and began firefighting operations. The fire had already engulfed several shanties in the cluster," a fire official said.
Officials said the blaze spread quickly because the huts were built very close to each other and many contained highly inflammable materials such as plastic sheets, wooden planks and cloth.
Firefighters and local police personnel carried out rescue and cooling operations and managed to bring the fire under control by around 6.30 am.
"The fire had spread to more than 100 huts and a adjacent godown of paper rolls and cardboard and the doors and windows of some residential flats also caught fire. A 17-year-old girl charred body was also recovered. Her body was sent to BSA Hospital by PCR," the officer said.
Police said the girl has been identified and further legal procedures are underway.
Many families said they lost everything in the fire as they had to flee with no belongings during the fire.
"We ran out to save our lives when the fire started. Within minutes everything was burning. Our hut, clothes, money and documents -- everything has turned to ashes," said Ramesh Kumar, a labourer from Bihar who has been living in the area.
Another person from West Bengal, said the flames spread so quickly that people barely had time to wake their children and escape.
"We woke up to screams and saw fire everywhere. We somehow managed to take the children outside. We could not save anything from the hut. All our belongings are gone," she said.
Some residents were seen searching through the burnt remains of their huts in the hope of finding salvageable items. "We worked for years to build this small hut and collect household items. In just a few minutes, everything we had earned was destroyed," said a migrant worker from Uttar Pradesh.
Police said the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained and an investigation is underway.
