Overview
- Devotees across India and Nepal converged on shrines and community pandals as the festival reached its peak on Monday, October 19, 2026, with large crowds reported at major sites including Kamakhya, Maihar, Varanasi and Kolkata-area pujas.
- Religious observances followed the two final Navadurga forms: Mahagauri rites associated with Maha Ashtami and Siddhidatri worship for Maha Navami, and many communities performed Kanya (Kumari) Pujan for one or both days because of the calendar overlap.
- Drik Panchang timings showed Ashtami tithi running into the morning of October 19 and ending at 10:51 a.m., after which Navami began, a schedule that produced dual muhurats and prompted guidance on the correct windows for rituals and fast-breaking.
- Local practice shaped celebrations: Gujarati samajs held nightly Garba and communal aartis in Nagpur, Bengali and Assamese communities staged themed Durga Puja pandals and cultural programmes in Visakhapatnam and Guwahati, and Kamakhya continued its site-specific non‑idol rites.
- Political leaders issued festival greetings invoking Maa Mahagauri while local administrations managed security and crowd control at pilgrimage sites, and coverage noted no major public‑order incidents though authorities kept arrangements in place for heavy footfall.