Chandigarh marks Dussehra with citywide Ravan Dahan; Sector 46 hosts tallest 103-ft effigy
Babushahi Bureau
Chandigarh, 2 October 2025:
Dussehra was celebrated with fervour across Chandigarh on Saturday as crowds thronged major grounds from mid-afternoon, with bustling melas, fireworks, and Ravan Dahan at more than 25 venues citywide.
The flagship celebrations drew heavy footfall at Sector 46 and Sector 17, where families began gathering from early afternoon to enjoy tableaux, cultural programmes, and grand effigy burnings that lit up the evening sky.
The city’s tallest effigies were at Sector 46 Mandi Ground, where a 103-ft Ravana, 90-ft Meghnad, and 85-ft Kumbhkaran were set ablaze amid chants of “Shri Ram,” drawing a massive turnout and extended pyrotechnic displays.
Major venues included Sector 17’s Parade and Circus Grounds, Panjab University Law Ground, Sector 40 near the Community Centre and the 40B large ground, Sector 49 Ground, Sector 29 OCF Ground and 29C Market Ground, Sector 30 RBI Quarters Ground, Sector 32D main market parking, Maloya Bus Stand Stadium and the dispensary-adjacent ground near Small Flats, Sector 7 Ramleela Ground and Arya Samaj Temple-adjacent ground, Sector 28 dispensary-adjacent ground, Sector 34 Ground, Ram Darbar Mandi Ground parking and near the mosque, Sector 27 Ramleela Ground, Sector 41D Ramleela Ground, Sector 56 Ramleela Ground, and the Sector 24–23 dividing road ground on the Sector 24 side.
In Sector 40D, children crafted a 35-ft Ravana effigy over 15 days using paddy straw and grass collected from nearby fields, funded through Rs 20,000 raised locally, and led the ceremonial burning to applause from residents.
At Sector 32D, the Shri Ramleela Committee staged Dussehra in the market area with 60-ft effigies of Ravana, Meghnad, and Kumbhkaran, opening with the national anthem; Vishal Jindal, Satish Katyal, Hariom Verma, and Radheshyam Garg remotely ignited the effigies, with embers visibly shooting from Ravana’s eyes.
Sector 27’s Ramleela Committee, led by president Dharampal Bansal, hosted high-energy festivities capped by synchronized fireworks as the three effigies were set alight, drawing cheers from the packed grounds.
In Sector 7, Dussehra was marked with the traditional burning of Ravana, Kumbhkaran, and Meghnad, underscoring Vijayadashami’s message of the victory of truth, dharma, and goodness over falsehood, ego, oppression, and evil to build a better society.
Sector 29’s OCF Cultural Manch showcased an elaborate tableau of the armies of Ram and Ravan, with chief patron Dushyant Kumar as chief guest; performances featured Gaurav Saini (Shri Ram), Rahul (Lakshman), Meenakshi Bhatt (Sita), Manoj Sharma (Hanuman), Goldy (Ravan), Akshay (Vibhishan), Sanjay (Mandodari), Rakesh (Sugriv), and Ravi Yadav (Angad), opening with children from Nirmani Estate dancing to Ganesh Vandana.
At Sector 24, thousands attended a vibrant cultural programme where participants and child artistes were felicitated by the Shri Saraswati Dussehra Committee, with chairman Darshan Kumar Kundra, president Subhash Goyal, general secretary Prem Shammi, vice president P.C. Singla, Jarnail Singh, and secretary Janak Raj present.