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2h ago

Calcutta High Court Bars Durga Puja Grants to Clubs Without Last-Year Utilisation Certificates

The bench conditioned fresh disbursals on compliance with a 2022 ruling that requires timely utilisation certificates.

The government informed the division bench of justices Sujoy Paul and Smita Das De that 2,876 puja committees in Kolkata have submitted utilisation reports on time. (Representative photo)

Overview

  • Justices Sujoy Paul and Smita Das De ordered on August 27 that no money be released to committees that failed to file last year’s utilisation certificates.
  • All recipients this year must submit their utilisation certificates to the West Bengal DGP and the Kolkata Police Commissioner within one month after Vijayadashami on October 2.
  • The court scheduled the matter for hearing after the Durga Puja recess to review compliance and the pending public interest litigation.
  • State Advocate General Kishore Dutta told the court that only three clubs, reportedly in Siliguri, did not file last year’s reports.
  • The grant per club was raised to ₹1.10 lakh this year, a decision that triggered PILs questioning use of public funds for festival subsidies.