Sholakia Eidgah ground in Kishoreganj district town is ready to host the country’s largest Eid congregation on Friday.
Kishoreganj Deputy Commissioner Siddiqur Rahman, who heads the Eidgah management committee, said cleaning the ground, making rows, arranging water and making sewerage facilities had been completed.
Organisers expect several hundreds of thousands of Muslims will join the 186th Eid congregation on the historical ground this year, like the previous years.
Siddiqur said preparations had been completed in cooperation with the municipal corporation, Public Health and Engineering Department, Public Works Department and other agencies.
The prayers will begin at 10am with Islamic scholar Maulana Fariduddin Masud leading it.
Five rounds will be fired in the air from a shotgun 3 minutes before the prayers to draw attention of the devotees. Another two rounds will be fired 3 minutes and 1 round 1 minute before the prayers.
Devotees from other districts and some other countries will also take part in the congregation.
Bangladesh Railway pressed into service two special trains named ‘Sholakia Special’ from Mymensingh and Bhairab to facilitate transport of devotees of far places.
Local Railway Station Master Joyanta Majumder told bdnews24.com that one train would leave for Kishoreganj from Mymensingh at 5:45am and another from Bhairab at 6am. Both trains will leave Kishoreganj at 12pm after the Eid prayers, he added.
Police said special security measures had been taken to ward off any subversive incident.
District Superintendent of Police Anwar Hossain Khan said a four-tier security circle had been created by police, armed police and RAB around the ground and all the devotees would be frisked before entering the prayer venue.
Observation towers and close circuit cameras have been set to keep every-moment watch on the ground, he added.
The official said leave of all police members in the district had been cancelled.
Eidgah management committee expects the devotees can say their prayers in peace and joy.
VIPs including the President, Prime Minister, Ministers and MPs have been invited to the congregation.
Dewan Hazrat Khan Bahadur established the Eidgah on a 7-acre land on the bank or the Narsunda river in 1828 after he established zamindari in Kishoreganj.
There are about 265 rows, each of which can accommodate 500 devotees at the Eidgah, meaning the entire ground can accommodate some 132,500 devotees.
However, many more devotees join the prayers from the nearby streets, open spaces and courtyards of surrounding houses.
Source: bdnews24
