Bengal approves 12,400 new Durga Pujas this year, taking total to about 57,500

West Bengal has given permission for 12,400 new community Durga Pujas this year, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said in Kolkata on Saturday, October 10, 2026, taking the number of pujas in the state to about 57,500, up from around 45,000 in 2025. Each puja committee is to receive a state grant of Rs 1 lakh, with payments starting from Sunday, October 11. Adhikari said more than 200 committees had declined the grant, asking that the money go instead to rural pujas and committees run by women. The figures come as Durga Puja, Bengal's biggest festival, gathers pace, with pandals opening across Kolkata this week.

Durga Puja is far more than a religious festival in Bengal. Community pujas, organised by neighbourhood clubs and committees, are at the heart of social life, and the pandals, idols and lighting provide work for artisans and many small businesses. A rise of more than a quarter in the number of pujas in a single year is therefore a significant change for the state's cultural and economic calendar.

The jump follows a change of government in the state. Adhikari, who now leads West Bengal, has said that under the previous government some organisers had to go to court to get permission to hold a puja, and his government has presented the new approvals as removing such hurdles. The grant of Rs 1 lakh per committee continues a practice of state support for puja committees, though at a slightly lower amount than last year's Rs 1.1 lakh, according to earlier reports.

Not every committee wants state money. The decision by more than 200 committees to turn down the grant, and to ask that it go to rural and women-led pujas, reflects a long-running debate in Bengal about whether public funds should be given to festival organisers, and about how to keep community pujas independent.

Inside Kolkata, the season is in full swing. The Dhakuria Sahidnagar committee, now in its 77th year, has built its pandal around the theme of "Maha Milan", or the great union, linking the neighbourhood's present with its history as a colony where refugees settled.

Short-term: More pujas mean more work for idol makers, pandal builders, lighting crews and food stalls across Bengal this festive season, and more crowd and traffic management for police and civic bodies.

Long-term: Whether the higher number lasts will depend on whether new committees can raise funds year after year. The debate over state grants to puja committees is likely to continue, especially as some committees prefer to stay independent.

Who is affected: Puja committees and clubs across West Bengal; artisans and workers in the festival economy; visitors and devotees; and police and civic authorities managing crowds.

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