Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has announced a citywide plan for Durga Puja 2026 that combines eco-friendly rules, temporary immersion ponds, road repairs, additional sanitation and enhanced crowd-management measures across more than 170 puja locations.
The preparations were discussed at a coordination meeting involving the BMC, the Commissionerate Police and puja committees. The administration is working to ensure that the festival is conducted smoothly while addressing the increased pressure on roads, public spaces, sanitation systems and night-time mobility during the celebrations.
Under the plan, the state government has waived land rent for government plots and spaces used by puja committees. The decision is intended to reduce the financial burden on organisers and support community-led festival arrangements. The measure was announced during the coordination meeting attended by Mayor Sulochana Das and representatives of the participating agencies.
The BMC has also directed puja committees to make their mandaps eco-friendly. Single-use plastic and polythene bags will not be permitted in or around the pandals. The restrictions are part of the civic body’s effort to limit festival waste and reduce the impact of large public gatherings on the city’s sanitation network.
Idol immersion will take place in temporary artificial ponds being constructed by the civic body. The arrangement is intended to prevent immersion-related pollution in the Daya and Kuakhai rivers. By shifting the activity to designated facilities, the BMC is linking festival management with protection of the city’s water bodies.
The civic body is deploying additional sanitation teams around the pandals. More dustbins are being installed, while sanitation workers will conduct cleaning operations during morning and evening shifts. The measures are designed to manage the additional waste generated by visitors and community events during the festival period.
Road and lighting works are also part of the preparations. Repairs are under way on potholes and damaged arterial roads affected by recent monsoon rains. Streetlights across the capital are being repaired, and temporary lighting is planned for darker lanes to improve visibility for people travelling between pandals at night.
The Commissionerate Police, BMC and puja committees are coordinating traffic management and crowd control. The plan includes the installation of CCTV cameras and arrangements intended to regulate large gatherings and movement around festival sites. The agencies are also expected to coordinate operational requirements with individual committees as celebrations approach.
The preparations place responsibility for a safe festival across several institutions rather than on the civic body alone. The BMC is handling sanitation, roads, lighting and immersion infrastructure, while the police are involved in traffic and crowd management and organisers are responsible for complying with environmental and site-level directions. The next phase will involve completing the repairs, lighting arrangements and temporary immersion ponds before the festival begins.
