Come October 22, residents will be able to burn the effigies of Ravan, Kumbhakarnaand Meghnad with eco-friendly crackers.
This year, Sri Dussehra Committee Trust has purchased crackers from Calcutta, instead of the chemical-laden ones bought from Patna City in previous years. The crackers, like every Dussehra season, would be fitted inside the effigies of Ravan, Kumbhakarna andMeghnad to light them up at Gandhi Maidan.
Preparations for the festivities are on in full swing on the premises of Swami Sahjanand YogParikshan Sansthan behind Patna Museum.
"This time, we have brought eco-friendly crackers and they would be set off with the help of remote controls. They would emit less smoke than the crackers used other years. Our aim is to make the people aware about not polluting the environment in the name of festivities," said Kamal Nopani, the president of the Sri Dussehra Committee Trust, which has been organising Vijaya Dashami celebrations at the Gandhi Maidan for the past 61 years.
This year, Ravan would be 70ft high, followed by brother Kumbhakarn and son Meghnad at 65ft and 60ft, respectively. Nopani said the trust enjoys every support from the district administration with safety measures being taken into account. Officials are being extra cautious since last year's stampede at Gandhi Maidan, which claimed 33 lives.
"We have had three meetings already with the district administration officials. We are not leaving any possibility of an untoward incident as lakhs of people gather to watch the Ravan Vadh programme," said Arun Kumar, secretary of the trust.
The other attraction of Vijaya Dashami celebrations this year would be a digital Lanka in which residents would be able to see the entire layout as known from the Ramayan, from all sides.
The organisers, however, adopted a defensive stance on asked about reasons to retain the Ashok Kumar Sudhakar team to construct the effigies. It was under Sudhakar in 2011 that the Ravan effigy had stooped to the ground before being lit up. It had caused the government great embarrassment and left chief minister Nitish Kumar disappointed.
Nopani said: "The incident was no one's mistake, it had occurred because of rain that day, as the bamboo structure supporting the effigy was soggy and did not hold up properly. There won't be a repeat."
Sudhakar also said: "People are going to enjoy this Vijaya Dashami celebration, as we have called four aerobic stuntmen who would perform in the ground. They will jump and form different positions in the form of Hanuman."
