Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has set out for Rangpur to visit puja pavilions outside Dhaka on Maha Navami, the ninth day of the Sharadiya Durga Puja.
He left Tejgaon airport on a military aircraft at 9am on Tuesday, according to his Press Secretary Saleh Shibli.
The prime minister will visit the Puja pavilion at Radha Gobinda temple in Rangpur and exchange greetings with devotees, Shibli said.
The head of government is scheduled to visit Puja venues across Rangpur, Rajshahi, and Chattogram throughout Maha Navami before returning to Dhaka at night.
Aboard the aircraft with him are Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) Standing Committee member Gayeswar Chandra Roy, Women and Children Affairs Minister AZM Zahid Hossain, BNP Acting Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, Cultural Affairs Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury, Local Government State Minister Mir Shahe Alam, and the prime minister’s Advisor Rehan Asif Asad.
Also on board are Bijan Kanti Sarkar, special assistant to the prime minister; BNP Special Secretary Belayet Hossain Mridha; Nipul Roy Chowdhury, an MP and vice-president of the Hindu Religious Welfare Trust; BNP Assistant Organising Secretary Jayanta Kumar Kundu; Atikur Rahman Ruman, prime minister's additional press Secretary; and Shibli, among others.
The prime minister’s itinerary:
9am: Departure from Tejgaon Airport for Saidpur Airport in Nilphamari
10am: Visit to the Dharmasabha Puja venue at Radha Gobinda Temple in Rangpur
12:30pm: Flight from Saidpur Airport to Shah Makhdum Airport in Rajshahi
1:15pm: Visit to the Dharmasabha temple Puja venue in Rajshahi
2:15pm: Break in the journey at Rajshahi Circuit House
3pm: Attendance at a public rally at Haji Muhammad Mohsin Government High School ground in Rajshahi
4:15pm: Take-off from Shah Makhdum Airport for Shah Amanat International Airport in Chattogram
5:30pm: Visit to the Puja venue at JM Sen Hall in Chattogram’s Rahmatganj
6:45pm: Break in the journey at Chattogram Circuit House
7:45pm: Onward flight from Shah Amanat International Airport to Dhaka
9:15pm: Arrival at Tejgaon Airport