Rain could neither dampen spirit nor keep the people of the city from bidding a fond adieu to Ma Durga on Dashami.

Following an early morning deluge in the city on Tuesday, many areas here like Zoo Road, Chandmari, Lakhtokia, Nabin Nagar, Anil Nagar and Six Mile were submerged in knee-deep water.

Puja committees heaved a collective sigh of relief that it did not rain on Saptami, Ashtami or Navami.

The district administrations in the state had made appropriate arrangements for immersion of idols. Immersion ghats in Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Silchar, Tezpur, Tinsukia and elsewhere were chock-a-block with people bidding farewell to goddess Durga.

Although the Kamrup (metro) administration had announced immersion from 10am, only a few Puja committees adhered to the timeline. It was only in the afternoon that the pace picked up at Kasomari ghat. Puja committees in the flooded areas particularly found it difficult to maintain the timeline. Many of them had planned to finish the immersion process early to avoid the heavy rush later on but their plans came to nought.

All roads seemed to lead to the ghats as thousands of people walked on or lined the streets to watch the idols being escorted to the ghats, with devotees dancing and sprinkling colour on each other.

Colourful lights flashed and music played as the idols proceeded on vehicles. Those standing by the roadside were also liberally strewn with gulal, flowers and rice. A carnival-like atmosphere prevailed throughout the city, although many were teary-eyed.

Around 500 community Pujas in the city were immersed till late in the night at the seven designated ghats. Kasomari near Fancy Bazar, Soonsali near Noonmati, Pandu near Maligaon and Basistha were the main ghats within the city.

On the outskirts, the idols were taken for immersion to Sonapur, Azara and Sualkuchi ghats. Pandu ghat alone accounted for around 200 immersions. The streamlined arrangements at Kasomari ghat, with two trolleys on rails and countless volunteers, made the process disciplined and avoided any untoward incidents. Vehicles and people accompanying the idols were not allowed to venture on the ghat, eliminating any danger to them from the swirling waters of the Brahmaputra. In the past, many had paid with their lives in their enthusiasm to accompany the idols.

A dry day on the 571st Abirbhab Tithi or birth anniversary of Srimanta Sankardev also helped matters.

In Dhubri, the Durga Puja celebrations ended on Tuesday with the immersion of Durga idols in a peaceful manner. Devotees thronged the ghat despite rains since the morning.

Additional reporting by Mukesh Kumar Singh in Dhubri