Overview

• Launching the season at Tala Prattoy, Sreebhumi and Hatibagan, the chief minister said she will open roughly 3,000 pandals over the next four to five days.
• She clarified that only pandals were opened on Saturday, with idol unveilings to begin from Mahalaya in keeping with ritual practice.
• ADG Javed Shamim said 10,000–15,000 additional police will be deployed statewide from Mahalaya, with Home Guards, NCC cadets and local volunteers assisting through the Oct 2 conclusion of Durga Puja.
• Kolkata Police will introduce the Pujo Bandhu app to offer pandal locations, entry-gate directions and integrated helplines for visitors.
• The state has set a ₹1.10 lakh grant per community puja for about 43,000 committees, an outlay near ₹500 crore, as BJP criticism over pre-Mahalaya openings drew a TMC rebuttal that only pandals, not deities, were inaugurated.