Bhubaneswar, Oct. 19: The Sum hospital fire tragedy has cast a shadow on Gajalakshmi Puja festivities with the organisers deciding to keep it a low-key affair.
A number of Puja committees cancelled their cultural programmes yesterday and musical events in the coming days have also been called off.
"We have cancelled high-octane programmes as we feel this is not the right time to hold such events. We have decided to host simple bhajan samarohs," said Saheed Nagar Lakshmi Puja Committee member Narayan Mohapatra.
The musical events at the Unit-VIII Lakshmi Puja pandal have also been cancelled. Another Puja committee at Chandrasekharpur has decided to utilise their funds to treat orphan children.
"We realised that merrymaking in this time won't be a right thing to do. So, we decided to visit five orphanages to distribute food and other essential items among the children," said Puja organiser Surya Nayak.
The 11-day Gajalakshmi Puja festival that began on October 15 is celebrated with grandeur in various parts of the state. But, the celebrations are set to take an exception this year because of the fire tragedy at the Sum hospital.
"The entire nation is mourning the tragedy. So many people lost their lives with no fault of their own. This is the time when we should stand by the families of the deceased," said Prachi Mohapatra, a 58-year-old businesswoman, who has been hosting the Gajalakshmi Puja at her home for the past 25 years.
The BPUT Students' Association and the Bhubaneswar Youth Trust hosted a candle light march to pay condolences to the families that lost their loved ones in the fire tragedy.
Students of various universities and colleges also organised condolence meetings on their campuses and in hostels. The youth wings of political parties visited the hospital to meet the rescued people.
A number of youth organisations had been holding demonstrations since the past two days for free treatment of the injured and the arrest of the owner of the hospital.
"We had a word with the attendants of patients at the Sum hospital and they were in state of panic. They had a lot of grudges against the hospital staff members. We feel all the medical facilities at the hospital should be stopped till they get clearance from the probe bodies," said student leader Subrat Behera. SOA University students conducted a peace rally today. A number of former students of Sum Hospital and Institute of Medical Sciences also joined the rally. "I really feel bad being an alumnus of the institute. I want things to be normal and the hospital to start functioning," said Anshita Student, a former institute student.
