Bangladesh is set to celebrate Pahela Baishakh, the first day of Bengali new year-1431 on Sunday amid tight security and restriction on outdoor celebrations after dusk.
People, irrespective of age, religion and ethnicity, usually usher in the Bengali new year every year through colourful processions, songs and fairs, and many programmes run until late into the night, beginning at dawn.
To mark the day on Sunday, Socio-political and cultural organisations have taken elaborate programmes with major celebrations taking place in and around Dhaka University areas.
President Mohammed Shahabuddin and prime minister Sheikh Hasina greeted the people of the country on the occasion of Pahela Baishakh, one of the most colourful festivals of the nation.
The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party also greeted the people on this occasion.
The president, in a message issued Saturday, wished all Bangladeshis living in the country and abroad a happy Bengali new year.
The advent of Baishakh comes to people鈥檚 lives with ever new messages, he said.
Forgetting sorrows, decay and failure, everyone wakes up with great joy and amid festivities, he added.
In her message, the prime minister termed Pahela Baishakh a universal festival. It is the day of harmony and the great reunion of Bengalis, she said.
Hasina urged all, irrespective of religion and caste, to wake up with new joy, forgetting the sorrows and failures of the past year.
The programmes of the day will begin in the capital with the musical soiree of Chhayanat at Ramna Batamul at dawn.
The traditional Mangal Shobhajatra, inscribed on UNESCO鈥檚 Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2016, will be brought out from Dhaka University Fine Arts Faculty premises in the morning.
The fine arts faculty of Dhaka University will bring out Mangal Shobhajatra, which has been organised since 1989 to celebrate the Bengali new year.
DU vice-chancellor Professor ASM Maksud Kamal at a press conference at the Fine Arts Faculty on Saturday said that the procession would be brought out at 9:15am.
The procession through the fine arts faculty, Shahbag, and Dhaka Club crossing is scheduled to end up reaching back to the Teachers Student Centre at DU. He urged people from all walks of life to participate in the event and make it a success.
Mangal Shobhajatra will also be brought out at division, district, and upazila levels to reach the traditional programme at the grassroots, as it has earned international recognition.
The Ruling Awami League has taken elaborate programmes to celebrate Pahela Baishakh.
The Dhaka South City unit will bring out a colourful procession in the city. The procession will start from Bahadur Shah Park in Old Dhaka at about 7:00am. AL central leaders, including its general secretary Obaidul Quader, are scheduled to join the programme.
Besides, a discussion will be held in front of Bahadur Shah Park with Dhaka South City AL president Abu Ahmed Mannafi in the chair.
Security has been tightened to avoid any untoward incident during the celebrations.
After visiting one of the key celebration points in the capital鈥檚 Ramna park, Dhaka Metropolitan Police commissioner Habibur Rahman said on Saturday that there was no specific threat of any attack during the Pahela Baishakh celebrations.
The security measures, however, have been taken considering past incidents, he said while briefing journalists after inspecting the security arrangements at Ramna Batamul.
He said that people would be allowed to enter Ramna Batamul until 5:00pm and all outdoor celebrations must be finished before dusk.
The DMP chief said that traffic would be somewhat controlled in Dhaka University and the Ramna areas from Saturday evening, and alternate routes would be introduced at some locations.
Rapid Action Battalion director general M Khurshid Hossain also said that following a detailed review of intelligence, cyber monitoring data and other sources, the battalion identified no specific threats targeting the celebrations.
He said that all event locations would have adequate security coverage, including the deployment of bomb disposal units and K9 squads in Dhaka.
Cultural organisation Bangladesh Udichi Shilpi Gosthi on Saturday in a press release protested against restriction on the celebrations after dusk.
The organisation said that it would begin a cultural programme at Projanma Chattar at Shahbagh in Dhaka at 6:01pm after the deadline set by the government for the completion of the celebrations.
Business communities are ready to open their traditional Halkhata, new account books. On the day, traders also offer sweets to customers.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, different government and non-government organisations, socio-cultural platforms, including Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, Bangladesh Shishu Academy, Bangla Academy, Department of Public Libraries, National Museum, Kabi Nazrul Institute, Copyright Office, National Book Centre, Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation, Department of Archives and Library and Dhaka University will hold various programmes along with seminars, exhibitions and quiz, essay and art competitions.
On this occasion, all museums and archaeological sites will remain open for all while children, students, people with disabilities and autism will be allowed to visit the museum free of charge, said the BSS reports.
On occasion, improved traditional food will be given at prisons, hospitals, at orphanages.
Bangladesh missions abroad will also organise different programmes to welcome the Bengali new year. The day is a public holiday.
Bangladesh Television, Bangladesh Betar and other private TV and radio channels will air special programmes highlighting the significance of Pahela Baishakh.
