West Bengal has launched the Green Durga Puja Excellence Awards 2026, a state-wide competition that will assess puja committees on waste segregation, sustainable materials, environmental awareness and community participation during the festival.
Urban Development and Municipal Affairs Minister Agnimitra Paul announced the awards at a press conference at Nagaryan Bhavan in Salt Lake, calling on puja committees to make Durga Puja a platform for environmental responsibility and civic participation.
The awards are being organised through the State Urban Development Agency (SUDA). They will recognise committees in four categories: Best Green Puja, Best Clean and Waste-Smart Puja, Best Awareness Initiative and Community Engagement Award.
The Best Green Puja category will assess the use of environment-friendly materials in pandals and idols, energy-efficient lighting and responsible immersion practices. The clean and waste-smart category will focus on scientific waste collection and segregation, waste management and cleanliness around puja premises.
“We do not want to reward only the appearance of a puja. We want to recognise the responsibility shown by puja committees towards the environment and the community,” Paul said.
The awareness category will cover campaigns around issues such as plastic pollution and water conservation. The community engagement award will recognise initiatives including tree plantation, participation by self-help groups and efforts to acknowledge the contribution of sanitation workers.
The evaluation will be conducted through a dedicated Green Durga Puja Evaluation App. Committees will be assessed at municipal, district and state levels, with entries shortlisted at the district level moving to the state-level evaluation.
The state-level winner will receive Rs 1 lakh. The first and second runners-up will receive Rs 80,000 and Rs 50,000, respectively. The best puja committee in each district will receive Rs 25,000, a certificate and an environment-friendly memento.
Paul said the winning committees would subsequently serve as Green Community Ambassadors in their localities for one year, promoting environmental protection and civic responsibility. The minister also said the government had already received a large number of applications and wanted the announcement to reach puja committees across every district.
