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Gangasagar Mela (District South 24 Parganas) : The largest fair of the State, Gangasagar Mela is a three-day event held in mid-January, on the occasion of Makar Sankranti, at Sagar Dwip. Lakhs of pilgrims come for a holy dip at the confluence of the Ganga and the Bay of Bengal.

Kenduli Mela (District Birbhum) : on the occasion of Makar Sankranti (mid-January) another fair is held at Kenduli in the district of Birbhum. The Mela draws the largest number of Bauls, the wandering minstrels of Bengal.

Jalpesh Mela (District Jalpaiguri) : On the occasion of Sivaratri (February – March), a month-long fair is held at Jalpesh near Mainaguri in the district of Jalpaiguri. The fair centres round the age-old Siva temple dedicated to Lord Jalpeswara.

Vasanta Utsav (District Birbhum) : With the onset of spring, Holi is celebrated all throughout India. At Santiniketan in the district of Birbhum, it is Vasanta Utsav (March). Students of the Visva Bharati University welcome the season of colours through songs and dances, throwing abir and spraying liquid dyes at each other.

Naba Barsho (Throughout West Bengal) : The Bengali year starts from the first Baisakh (mid-April). It is an occasion for celebration to the Bengalees in general and tradesmen in particular. New clothes, fresh flowers, offerings at temples, people visiting decorated shops mark the day.

Rathayatra (District Hooghly) : Rathayatra (June-July) at Mahesh near Serampore is a week-long festival. People throng to have a share in pulling the long ropes attached to the chariots of Lord Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra on the journey from the temple and back.

Jhapan (District Bankura) : All over the Western part of the state, a festival is held in the honour of the serpent-deity Manasa on the last day of the Bengali month Sravana (mid-August). But the most spectacular is the one held at Vishnupur in the district of Bankura, with its shows of live snakes on open platforms.

Bera Utsav (District Murshidabad) : Every year on the last Thursday of the Bengali month of Bhadra mid-September), Bera Utsav is held at Lalbagh on the river Bhagirathi near the palace of the Nawabs. Fireworks of various size and colour add to the gaiety of the festival.

Durga Puja & Deepavali (Throughout West Bengal) : The largest Bengali festival is Durga Puja, held in the Bengali month of Aswin (October). Images of the ten-armed goddess are worshipped in ancient houses and at pandals, erected specially for the Puja. After the four-day ceremony, the images are immersed in the river. Durgapuja is the most important festival in the city of Kolkata.

The festival that follows is Deepavali, the festival of lights,. The worship of goddess Kali is marked by display of fireworks and crackers.

Rash Mela (District Cooch Behar) : On the occasion of Rashyatra (November), a fair is held at Cooch Behar in North Bengal. The month-long fair is one of the most important fairs in the area.

Jagaddhatri Puja (District Hooghly) : Goddess Jagaddhatri is worshipped in the Bengali month of Kartick (November). At Chandannagar near Kolkata images of the goddess are tall, pandals spectacular and the illumination unique. In fact, the illumination part is the most attractive feature here.

Teesta Tea & Tourism Festival (Inter-State) : Held in a series at Darjeeling, the Dooars and in Sikkim, the Teesta Tea & Tourism Festival is celebrated with a view to promote tourism in this region as a composite tourist destination, with its bounties in tea, timber and tourism. The festival is held every year in November – December.

Poush Mela (District Birbhum) : Between the 7^th and 9^th of Poush (end-December). Poush Mela is held at Santiniketan in the district of Birbhum. Of the many seasonal festivals celebrated at Santiniketan, this is perhaps the most important, with cultural programmes consisting of folk music & dance, folk theatre and Baul songs.

Vishnupur Festival (District Bankura) : In the temple town of Vishnupur a festival is organised every year between 27 and 31 December. Characterised by exhibition and sale of local handicrafts and performance of the rich musical tradition that Vishnupur boasts, this is an immensely popular festival.

Id (Throughout West Bengal) : Id is the largest festival to the Muslims of West Bengal. Id-ul-Fitr comes after the lapse of the Ramjan month and marks a happy communion after a month of prayer and fasting. Seventy days after Id-ul-Fitr, comes another festive occasion – Id-uj-Joha. It is celebrated throughout the state, but with great grandeur in Kolkata. A very large congregation of Muslims as well as non-Muslims is held at the Kolkata Maidan.