Women mark Dussehra with Sindoor Khela before Durga idol in Jabalpur

The Dusshera celebrations took place at the Siddhiwala Bus Library Association. During the festivities, women applied vermillion to each other and began the ritual of Sindoor Khela. They bid farewell to the mother goddess, marking the end of her 10-day visit to her parents' home on Dusshera.

This year marks the centenary of the Association, and according to the women, Sindoor Khela is our traditional farewell celebration, which we have been honouring for many years. In this event, women from the Bengali community, as well as women from other communities, participated in the sacred Sindoor Khela event to bid farewell to the mother goddess.

While bidding farewell to the mother goddess, Tanushree expressed her wish for her to return next year.

"It is the day of mother's farewell. We bid them farewell happily. May they come back next year. We celebrate with great pomp and ceremony," one of the devotees, Tanushree, told ANI.

Ritu Jangde attended the Sindoor Khela event for the first time and described it as a fantastic experience. "We are not Bengalis, but we thoroughly enjoyed participating in the event," Ritu Jangde told ANI.

Another devotee, Neha Gupta, expressed her happiness in participating in the Sindoor Khela event.

"We are not Bengalis, we have come to attend this culture for the first time and are very happy. We are bidding farewell to the Mother Goddess with joy. May she return with blessings next year," Neha Gupta told ANI.

Additionally, one of the devotees, Usni Pal, explained the ritual of Sindoor Khela and emphasised that the goddess bestows blessings upon the mother goddess.

"We celebrate the Sindoor Khela event so that the Mother Goddess blesses the married women and leaves," Pal told ANI.

Meanwhile, in another part of the country, the 1055 Artillery Regiment of the Border Security Force (BSF) deployed in Jaisalmer held a traditional 'Shastra Pooja' on the occasion of Vijayadashmi. During the pooja, the soldiers worshipped the weapons, including those used during Operation Sindoor. They also offered flowers to the weapons with Shakti mantras, considering the firearms as deities. (ANI)