Dhaka: Durga Puja, the biggest religious festival of the Hindu community, began on Monday with the incarnation (Bodhon) of Goddess Durga at temples across the country.

The five-day religious festival will come to an end with the immersion of the idols of the deity in rivers and other water bodies on October 19.

Draped in new dresses, a large number of devotees irrespective of ages thronged the city puja mandaps, including the Dhakeshwari National Temple and Ram Krishna Mission, and offered prayers before Goddess Durga, seeking divine blessings for peace, prosperity and welfare of the country and its people.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited the Dhakeswari National Temple and Ram Krishna Mission on the occasion of Durga Puja.