According to a senior official of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, over 500 Kali statues were plunged from 17 ghats along the Hooghly until 9pm on Tuesday, the first of the four-day window for immersions (KMC).
I permit immersion in a number of different water bodies, particularly in Kolkata’s south and southeast. The official was unable to specify how many idols it submerged in such water bodies.
Only from the Baje Kadamtala ghat were over 100 idols submerged. Nimtala Ghat and Judges Ghat were two additional ghats where several idols were submerged. According to the official, there are about 10,000 Kali pujas held in the Kolkata Municipal region.
“We did not expect that a large number of idols would come for immersion on Tuesday. Amabasya continued till late on Tuesday afternoon. Besides there was the solar eclipse. Also many people do not want to immerse idols on a Tuesday,” said the official.