West Bengal Chief Minister has increased Durga Puja grants by 25 thousand rupees. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that organisers will be given a grant of 1 lakh 10 thousand rupees this year for Durga Puja.
Last year, the state government gave 85 thousand rupees to the Puja committees. Last year only the CM had announced that one lakh rupees would be given from the following year. However, the actual grant amount has been increased by another Rs 10 thousand rupees this year from what was announced last year.
Along with this, electricity concessions have been added. The Chief Minister has asked electric power distribution company CESE and the State Electricity Distribution Board to give 80 percent concession on electricity charges to the Puja committees.
Durga Puja carnival to be hosted on October 5
The CM further announced that the Durga Puja carnival will be held in Kolkata on October 5. Durga idol immersion will be held on October 2 (Vijaya Dashami), 3 and 4.
This year, Durga Puja falls in the last week of September, as a result of which Puja committees have already started preparations. To discuss Puja preparations, the Chief Minister held a meeting with the entrepreneurs of various Puja committees in the state at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata on Thursday. The meeting was attended by the state’s administrative leaders, representatives of service providers like Kolkata Municipality, Fire Department, CESC, Police Administration, Transport and Health Department.
Drone surveillance during Durga Puja
To enhance security during Durga Puja, the chief minister said during the meeting that strict surveillance should be kept at the puja pandals. She said that surveillance should be carried out through drones, CCTV cameras, watch towers.
Banerjee has also asked the puja committees to take care of the safety of women visiting the pandals and the convenience of the elderly.
Measures to prevent overcrowding at pandals
The Chief Minister announced, “There should be coordination between the Kolkata Police and the state police. All control rooms should be kept active all the time. Separate entry and exit routes should be kept to avoid crowding. It should also be ensured that the puja pandal has a public address system. So that the foreigners are not insulted in any way. I will ask the transport department to drive more cars so that people get cars from time to time to return home. I will ask the officials to talk about the metro running a little longer. So that local trains are also available at night. I will ask them to keep ambulances ready at puja pandals. We will also have to see that there are no incidents of trampling. We will have to arrange lighting at the immersion place.”