Cuttack, Oct. 16: Puja committees across the city are racing against time to complete welcome arches and pandals ahead of Dussehra starting from October 19.
Earlier, the initial works for the construction of welcome gates and pandals got delayed due to rain that lashed the city on October 12.
This time, too, the puja organisers are leaving no stone unturned to greet the revellers with huge welcome gates, which are basically replicas of important structures in the country and outside.
Each puja committee is spending a whopping Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh towards construction of the gates and arches, and the artisans, mostly from Bengal and Bihar, are working round the clock to complete the pending job.
The Malgodown Puja Committee is coming up with at least seven welcome gates, including an 80ft-high replica of the Lalmahal in Rajasthan. The Lalmahal replica is likely to be a crowd-puller this festive season.
"We have been observing Durga Puja since 1958 and using a tableaux made of zari instead of silver or gold due to space shortage. But, we are trying our best to add beauty to the festival through huge welcome gates," said committee member Sayed Nijamuddin Ahmed.
The Khannagar Puja Committee, too, has put in a lot of effort on their pandal and welcome arch, which will be a replica of the Vaishno Devi shrine and Trikuta Mountain.
"Initially, pandal construction was affected due to the rain that lashed the city earlier this week. But, our artisans are putting in a lot of effort to complete the work," said committee secretary Prafulla Sahoo.
Sahoo said the pandal would be a thematic structure with various social messages to create awareness among the people to save environment and animals.
However, all eyes are on the Shankarpur-Badambadi Puja Committee, which had introduced the concept of gigantic welcome arches and gates from 1988 in the city.
This time, the Badambadi Puja Committee is working on a replica of the Lalit Palace of Bangalore. Last year, it came up with an illuminating structure in the form of Titanic.
Though most of the puja committees have given stress showcasing the rich cultural tradition and structures of India, the Jobra Durga Puja Committee has decided to erect a replica of the famous London Bridge. It will be spending nearly Rs 7 lakh towards the construction of nearly four gates.