The artists work on the effigies in Patna on Sunday. Picture by Ranjeet Kumar Dey

Gaya artist Mohammad Jafar Alam and his team members are busy giving the final touches to the effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad for the Dussehra celebration on October 3.

However, rain is posing a constant threat to the eight-member team, headed by Alam. “We have been working on the effigies since September 3 and are trying to give it the best shape. Rain is the only problem here. Last Friday, there was heavy rainfall and around 3ft water had accumulated on the campus,” Alam said. The artists are working at an open space near Patna Museum.

Shree Dussehra Committee Trust has been organising Ravan Vadh at Gandhi Maidan for the past 59 years. The artists are taking precautionary measures to complete the work before October 1, when the effigies will be shifted to Gandhi Maidan. Alam said: “We have used charpai (wooden bed) to prevent the effigies from getting wet. The trust has provided us a waterproof tent to carry out the work. We do not want to make a poor impression on the people of the state.”

The artists are using 350 bamboos, 259kg paper, 70kg wheat flour and 20lt paint to prepare the structures. The size of the effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarna and Meghnad would be 65ft, 55ft and 50ft, respectively.

Golden Mohammad, an artist from the group, said: “Our job is to the complete the structures and shift them to Gandhi Maidan by October 1. After that, crackers would be fitted into the structures, which is not our responsibility. The difficult job is to make the effigies stand straight until they start burning.”

Ravan Vadh will take place at Gandhi Maidan at 5.30pm on October 3. Governor D.Y. Patil would inaugurate the function and chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi would be the chief guest.

Convener of the trust Kamal Nopani said: “We have collected Rs 10 lakh through donation for the festivities, including the cost of the crackers. This year, we will use skyrocket crackers that last longer. However, the rain threat looms large and we can only pray to God.”