Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday launched plans on how to hold the Durga puja, West Bengal’s largest festival, during the coronavirus pandemic, while throwing party poopers on thousands of organizers and street vendors of puja.
“We will surely organize the Durga puja this year. We have to avoid crowds at all costs because the vultures are sitting there to blame us if we don’t allow the bidding or if there is any spike after bidding. They have no responsibility, ”he said while launching a veiled attack on the opposition.
“We will lock up the coronavirus and bid this year,” the CM said.
This year, more than 37,000 bids would be organized across the state, including over 2,500 in Kolkata and around 1,700 bids organized by women. The list does not include those organized within housing and house societies.
“We are facing difficulties and we are running out of funds. We have spent more than 2500 crore rupees. But I know that the puja committees are in trouble and the state would provide them with a grant of Rs 50,000 each. I know the finance secretary would be angry. But I would ask him to give them 81,000 street vendors of 2,000 rupees each for the month of the bid, ”Banerjee said.
Here’s a list of what to expect this time:
* There is no soak carnival on Red Road this year.
* There are no cultural programs during puja days.
* Masks, disinfectants that will be made mandatory within a radius of 500 meters from each pandal.
* Airier and more open pandals with a special emphasis on physical distance. Clubs to deploy more volunteers.
* Selection process of the best bids and adjudication to be carried out virtually.
* Permission to bid online
* The organizers of the Puja do not need to pay the fees to the civic corps and the fire department. Power supply rates reduced by 50%
* Pandal hopping allowed at night for nine days
* The inauguration of the Puja will be carried out on a small scale and mostly
The prime minister also announced some grants for civic volunteers and ASHA workers. While the festive season has already started with the Mahalaya and Viswakarma puja on September 17, the Durga puja will take place between October 22 and 25.
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