Dan Boyle, the lord mayor of Cork, will on October 12 inaugurate the first Durga Puja organised by the Bengali community in the second-largest city in Ireland.

“We are hosting Durga Puja in Cork for the first time. There are around 50 Bengali families in Cork and most of us have joined hands to organise the puja. These days, we are busy in making arrangements and are getting a huge response from Bengalis as well as other Indians who live here,” Rajasree Das Banerjee, one of the organisers, told The Telegraph from Cork.

Rajasree who hails from Alipurduar town, has been staying in Ireland for years.

The puja, she said, would be held at the Gaelic Athletic Association hall under the banner of the Cork Sarbojonin Durgatsab Committee.

They have ordered a five-foot Durga idol from Kumartuli in Calcutta. “We are eagerly waiting to receive it,” said Rajasree.

However, unlike Bengal where the puja would be held for four days — from October 10 to October 13 — the puja in Cork would be held for two days .

Rajasree, who is in charge of the decoration, food and cultural programme that has been lined up, said they were putting all efforts into maintaining the Bengali tradition during the puja.

“After the lord mayor inaugurates the puja, there will be cultural functions. Children will stage a drama while women will sing Rabindra Sangeet. We have also made arrangements for dhunuchi naach and sindoor khela,” she said.

Prasad will be served at the venue during the puja. Also, food stalls serving Bengali and Irish cuisine would be set up at the hall for the attendees.

“We had an interesting experience when we briefed a local chef about the making of khichri. It was a new food item for him but eventually, he got convinced that he could cook it. Let’s see how he manages it,” Rajasree said.