India explodes into Dussehra celebrations, Ravana effigies burnt

New Delhi/Mumbai/Jaiur/Lucknow, Oct 24: A nation groaning under pricerise and corruption celebrated Dussehra, the festivity of victory of good over evil, across India today by burning the effigies of Ravana, his brother Kumbhkarana and son Meghanada. Leading politicians including President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi attended the Dussehra celebration at Delhi's Subhash Maidan, with Sonia Gandhi performing the aarti of Lord Rama and Laxmana. Crowds thronged popular 'Ramlila' venues like the Lav-Kush and Shri Nav Dharmik Lila Committees in old Delhi and the Shri Ramlila Committee in Punjabi Bagh area of the city to catch the final episode of the dramatic re-enactment of the life of Lord Rama.With the burning of the effigies, spectacular fireworks lit up the sky and captivated the crowds."The special effects were too good, especially the fire coming out of Ravan's mouth," said an ecstatic 14-year-old Shaan Dogra watching the spectacle organised by the Lav-Kush Ramlila Committee."Special effects were an integral part of the ceremony this year. The effigies emitted fire from the mouth and their ornaments changed colours as they were set on fire," said Lav-Kush Ramlila Committee secretary Arjun Kumar. Donning their best ethnic attires, people thronged temples that were decked up with lights and flowers to offer their prayers.The festivities culminated after nine auspicious days of navratri, during which Ramlila is enacted to depict the life of Lord Ram.A sudden heavy downpour Tuesday threatened to mar the annual burning of the effigies as many got wet and some damaged.The organisers had to work overtime to repair the damaged effigies.With the weatherman forecasting no rains Wednesday, the organisers definitely breathed a sigh of relief. The navratra festivities dedicated to Goddess Durga also came to an end Wednesday. In Srinagar, a 30-feet high effigy of Ravana was burnt at the TRC grounds, while in Ranchi, the Jharkhand chief minister Arjun Munda burnt a 65-feet high effigy of Ravana. In Patna, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar burnt a 65-feet tall Ravana effigy wearing Rajasthani ghaghra, while in Jammu, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad attended the Dussehra celebrations. A 75-feet high Ravana effigy was burnt in Faridabad, while in Chandigarh, a 58-feet high effigy was burnt by revellers. In Ambala, Haryana, the height of the Ravana effigy was an astounding 195 feet, made by more than 100 labourers over 8 months at a cost of Rs 15 lakhs. It was burnt with the help of a remote control. In Ludhiana, each head of the ten-headed demon king flew up in the air expelling flame in the sky and crashed to the ground. The effigy was 72-feet high. There was rath yatra on Dussehra in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, while in Amritsar, the Ravana effigy was 135 feet high built at a cost of Rs 4.5 lakhs. In Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attended the Dussehra celebration, while in Meerut, a 115-feet high Ravana effigy lighted up its eyes before bursting into flames with the firing of crackers. In Nagpur, a 60-feet high Ravana was shown giving 'bribe', while the Dussehra celebration sent out the message against female foeticide. In Almora, Uttarakhand, effigies of 20 members of Ravana's family were burnt after they were taken out in a procession through the town. Anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare attended the Ravan Dahan celebration in his village Ralegan Siddhi near Aurangabad, Maharashtra.