Hectic work is in to ensure a spectacular puja carnival which is scheduled to be held on 27 October. Senior administrative and police officers visited Red Road, the site of the carnival to oversee the preparations. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is likely to be present at the carnival. For more than a month she has not left her home in accordance with medical advice after she developed knee problems.

The injury she had received during her north Bengal trip few months ago got aggravated during her foreign tour. The carnival will start at 4.30 p.m. Around 100 clubs in the city will take part in the parade on their way to immerse Ma Durga in river Hooghly. Security has been beefed up in areas surrounding Esplanade and Maidan. Around 1,500 police personnel will be deployed. Drones will be used to intensify vigil.

Watch towers have been built. Sniffer dogs and bomb disposal squad personnel will be kept posted near the site. The clubs taking part in the carnival will present cultural shows and timed allotted to each club is 3 to 5 minutes. The ghats where the immersion will take place have been illuminated.

The Shyamaprasad Mookerjee Port Trust will remove bamboo structures of the idols at Baje Kadamtala Ghat and Judges Ghat. Mechanised boats, a pontoon-mounted crane of 5 tons capacity have been deployed. Mayor Firhad Hakim and Debashis Kumar, member, mayor-in-council for Parks and Squares visited the ghats and oversaw the arrangements.

The ghats have been brightly illuminated. The state government has invited dignitaries which include members of different consulates, businessmen, poets, singers and theatre personalities. Many foreigners who had come to see Durga Puja by the UNESCO will remain present at the carnival.

The Red Road carnival started following the initiative of the Chief Minister in 2016. Durga Puja has received Intangible Cultural Heritage tag from the UNESCO. UNESCO officials also visited Kolkata to see the greatest festival in Bengal. People from different communities visited the pandals following Bengal’s tradition. Miss Banerjee often says “ Religions are personal but festivals are for everyone.” The carnival could not be held during the Covid pandemic in 2020 and 2021.