Artist from Assam's Dubri uses expired medical waste to create Durga puja idol amid Covid

In an attempt to express his solidarity with everyone battling with the COVID-19 pandemic, Sanjib Basak, an artist from Assam's Dubri created Goddess Durga's idol using medical waste. Basak created a 6.5-foot-high Durga idol with 40,000 expired tablets, capsules and injection vials of different colours. While speaking to ANI about the inspiration behind this unique idol, Basak said, 'Since everyone is waiting for the COVID-19 vaccine, I decided to make the idol using medicines.' 

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Assam's Sanjib Basak creates Durga idol using medical waste

Sanjib Basak told ANI. "In the initial phase, I was worried that I won't be able to make the idol this year due to work pressure and strict safety protocols. But I managed to create one with expired medicines."

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Basak who is known for creating innovative and eco-friendly idols of Gods and Goddesses told ANI that being an employee of Dubri's district administration, he often visits drug stores to purchase medicines as a part of his COVID-19 duty. There he saw shopkeepers having stocks of expired medicines. He informed that usually these expired medicines are returned to the company, but due to lockdown, the shopkeepers could not do the same and therefore, he decided to use this medical waste. 

'Xi Jinping' Replaces 'Asur' In Bengal Puja Pandal 

Thematic pandals have been one of most talked about features during Durga Puja, especially in West Bengal and other parts of Eastern India. The puja committees often try to capture the mood of the public through the creative puja pandals which highlight contemporary and trending issues and individuals. 

READ | Hyderabad: 31-foot COVID-19 Themed Durga Idol Installed At Puja Pandal With Virus As Demon

Amid worsening Indo-China relations after China’s misadventure along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, a Durga Puja committee in West Bengal's Berhampore decided to pander to the current sentiments against Chinese President Xi Jinping. The puja committee has come up with a unique idol’s entourage, projecting the asura (demon) as Xi Jinping. 

Durga as a migrant woman

Last week, the Durga Puja pandal of Kolkata's Barisha Club gained fame after they replaced the traditional idol of the goddess with that of a migrant woman along with her children. The club installed the idol to depict the hardships faced by the migrant workers during the COVID-19 lockdown and to pay a tribute to them. 

READ | Bengal Puja Pandal Shows Durga Idol Crowning Healthcare Worker Amid COVID-19

(With ANI inputs)