Kolkata puja preparations received a safety and civic-services push after Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari directed authorities to clear outstanding salaries of municipal workers and strengthen arrangements for public safety, sanitation and emergency response across West Bengal.
The chief minister held a virtual meeting on Thursday with senior state officials and representatives of all municipalities to review preparations ahead of the festive period. The meeting covered the condition of roads, municipal workers’ pay, public safety and arrangements for the upcoming tarpan rituals and Durga Puja.
According to the report by Sangbad Pratidin – Kolkata, Adhikari instructed municipalities to pay pending salaries to civic workers. Municipalities have also been directed to conduct special cleaning drives during the puja days, when large crowds are expected in urban areas and waste generation typically rises.
The chief minister said roads had been repaired to prevent inconvenience to visitors and that remaining district-level works would be completed within the next few days. The instruction places municipal administrations at the centre of the festival preparation effort, combining routine civic services with crowd management and emergency coordination.
Safety arrangements for the tarpan rituals were also discussed. The rituals are scheduled to begin at 3 a.m. on Friday, according to the report. Authorities have been asked to provide adequate lighting at the river ghats and deploy divers and coastal police personnel to prevent accidents. The measures are intended to support early-morning gatherings at water bodies, where visibility and crowd control are key operational concerns.
The meeting also reviewed the response mechanism in the event of an accident during the festival. Police, fire services and municipalities have been instructed to work in coordination. Hospitals across the state have been asked to ensure that sufficient doctors are available during the puja period so that emergency medical needs can be addressed without reducing regular capacity.
A police emergency number, 112, is scheduled to begin operations on Friday, the report said. The service is expected to provide a rapid police response during emergencies. The report did not provide details on the number of personnel, response-time targets or the geographic coverage planned for the festival period.
The state government and development authorities have also been asked to decorate cities and suburbs ahead of Durga Puja. Adhikari called on private organisations to improve the appearance of areas under their control as part of the wider preparation effort. The direction places public and privately managed urban spaces within the festival-readiness exercise.
The review comes as state authorities prepare for the formal launch of Durga Puja at Eden Gardens. According to the report, the chief minister and the council of ministers are scheduled to travel from Red Road to Eden Gardens in a procession at around 4.30 p.m. on Friday. The inauguration, in the presence of the governor, is scheduled for 4.45 p.m., with the programme expected to continue until 9 p.m.
The immediate implementation priorities are the payment of municipal salary dues, cleaning operations, lighting at tarpan ghats, deployment of divers and coastal police, emergency coordination and medical staffing during the festival period.
