Residents of Apna Ghar on their way to pandals. A Telegraph picture

Siliguri, Sept. 29: Brushing aside social stigma, members of Suryanagar Samaj Kalyan Sangstha, a Siliguri-based NGO, took leprosy patients on pandal-hopping in the town, treating them to the best Pujas in town.

Chalita Resey Deb (50) boarded the bus on his wheel trolley. “There was a time when people did not even talk to us. But now leprosy patients like us can visit pandals and have fun like anyone else,” said Deb at the Kishore Sangha pandal on Sevoke Road.

It was also a day of fun for mentally challenged eight-year-old Dipayan Sharma of Deshbandhupara. Clad in a new yellow shirt and cargo trousers, he spent the day visiting the major puja pandals with his mother and other 159 mentally and physically challenged people in the town. The North Bengal Handicapped Rehabilitation Society took them to different pandals, besides treating them to a sumptuous breakfast and a lunch.

It was also a day-out for the 40 residents of the Mahavir International’s old age home — Apna Ghar — who spent the day with the employees of Sikha Tours and Travels. Happiness was vibrant in the eyes of Shanti Agarwal, who at 66, did not seem to get tired even at the end of the day. “Visiting puja pandals was fun for us,” she said.

“Our idea is to add some joy and happiness to their otherwise grey lives,” said Subrata Datta of the travel company.