The Kumari Puja, a ceremony for worshipping the Divine Mother in the pure form of the virgin, is held on Mahastami, the eighth day of Durga Puja, or sometimes on Mahanabami, the ninth day.

This year the Kumari Puja is being celebrated on Mahastami in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Barisal, Sylhet, Habiganj and Dinajpur.

The puja beginning at 10:30am at the Ramkrishna Mission in Dhaka is a crowd puller. Here the devotees will worship a six-year-old girl, Onrina Goswami Jyoti, as a living form of the goddess.

Besides the Kumari Puja, special devotional songs, dance and other rituals will also be performed at different Puja Mandaps (altars) today. The Sandhi Puja will be held from 11.35am to 12:23pm today.

The devotees yesterday celebrated the Mahasaptami puja. A large number of devotees visited the Dhakeshwari National Temple, Jagannath Hall, Ramkrishna Mission, Ramna Kali Mandir, Siddheswari Kali Mandir and Tantibazar, Shankhari Bazar, Banglabazar, Mohakhali and Farm Gate areas.

Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka and State Minister for Home Lutfozzaman Babar visited different Puja Mandaps at Tantibazar, Shankharibazar and Banglabazar areas yesterday afternoon and exchanged greetings with the devotees.

The state minister told the crowds that the alliance government has taken effective measures to ensure security of the Puja Mandaps as well as devotees.

He also said that around 23,000 Puja Mandaps have been set up across the country.

But the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad put the figure at around 18,000, including 146 in Dhaka.

Mayor Khoka urged all to keep vigilance to maintain communal harmony during the festival.

In a press release, Shree Shree Ramsita Mandir Committee said the Awami League leaders will distribute clothes among the distressed people on the temple premises at 11:00am today.