Cuttack is the place after Kolkata you shouldn’t miss if you want to see and enjoy the festival Durga Puja (Dussehra). You can see the great Mother, as the ten-handed Durga. It is believed that Maa Durga come down from her husbands home on to her parent’s abode in the Himalayas for three days every year. This is called the 7th (Saptami), 8th (Ashtami) and 9th (Navami) days of the bright fortnight in the Aswina month.
In Cuttack richly decorated and beautifully made images are installed in people’s houses and Puja Mandaps / Pandals and the festival brings a spirit of holiness in the city, so much so that people of other faiths work and celebrate together. In Odisha one of the special thing during Durga Puja is in the temples it extends over a sixteen day period known as Shodasa Upachar. But on the other places its celebrated for three days only.
The 5 Puja pandals you should watchout for are CHAULIAGANJ , RANIHAT , KHANNAGAR , CHANDINI CHOWK , DARGAHBAZAR.