Kolkata Durga Puja crowd management will focus on controlling heavy pedestrian movement between 5 pm and 9 pm near Sealdah railway and Metro stations, Rash Behari Avenue and several major puja pandals, according to a plan reported by Kolkata Police. The measures include separate pedestrian routes, designated Metro gates, subway use and possible traffic diversions.
Police expect the evening period to see the highest pressure on roads and transport interchanges during the puja days. At Sealdah, visitors and commuters will be encouraged to use the subway connecting the railway and Metro stations, helping separate pedestrian movement from road traffic around the busy interchange.
At Rash Behari Crossing, police may allow vehicles to move for seven to 10 minutes depending on pedestrian volumes. The crossing is expected to experience significant pressure because of visitors moving towards pandals and nearby roads. Police have also identified Tara Road and Mysore Road crossings on Rash Behari Avenue as locations where pedestrian movement could be heavy.
The plan includes separate routes for visitors at some prominent pandals. Santosh Mitra Square will be separated from College Square, while Chetla Agrani will be separated from Deshapriya Park. At Santosh Mitra Square, entry and exit points will be located on BB Ganguly Street. If crowd levels rise further, police may open an additional route near Jagat Cinema.
In Chetla, police expect heavy pedestrian movement around Ahindra Mancha Crossing. The arrangements are intended to keep visitor flows moving through designated paths rather than allowing crowds to accumulate at road junctions and access points. The details indicate that the traffic plan is being organised around both individual pandals and the links between them.
Vehicle movement may also be affected on routes towards Tollygunge Circular Road and Durgapur Bridge. Buses and other vehicles travelling in that direction may be diverted through Hazra and Alipore Road. The diversion is intended to manage the interaction between vehicle traffic and visitors moving towards the puja areas, although the report does not specify the exact timings or duration of each diversion.
The measures place railway and Metro access, pedestrian subways, road crossings and pandal entry points within a single crowd-management framework. For visitors, the operational details mean that access to popular puja destinations may depend on marked gates and designated routes. For commuters, the main disruptions are likely to be concentrated around the evening peak, when police expect the largest crowds.
Kolkata Police’s plan will be implemented at Sealdah, Rash Behari Avenue, Chetla and the identified pandal zones during the puja days. Officials will assess crowd levels at key points and may open additional routes or alter vehicle movement where required.
