Mamata Banerjee expresses gratitude to UNESCO for awarding Cultural Heritage tag to Kolkata’s Durga Puja

Kolkata witnessed an unusual rally. The people of the city usually have to endure rallies of political parties but this was an exception. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee headed it. The purpose was to express gratitude to UNESCO for including Kolkata’s Durga Puja on the intangible cultural heritage representative list. The chief minister had renowned cricketer Sourav Ganguly alongside her on the stage and they greeted the UNESCO representatives who were present on the occasion. The rally included not only Kolkata but also each district of West Bengal. Among the participants were women drummers of South 24 Parganas to religious and cultural groups (Bauls) of Birbhum. The rally originated from Jorasanko Thakur Bari (House of Rabindranath Tagore) in Kolkata and culminated at Red Road ‘Durga Puja is Celebrated by All’: Mamata Thanks UNESCO for Recognising Festival at Kolkata Rally. The chief minister thanked the UNESCO representatives who had come. She said, “….. About Rs 40 crore business takes place during the Durga Puja, and this support from UNESCO will give a big boost to us…..”

Sourav Ganguly also expressed happiness and said Durga Puja is “beyond imagination”. He admitted about traveling to different parts of the world and said he had never seen such festivity anywhere. He thanked UNESCO about giving the festival due recognition. The TMC government also felicitated Professor Tapati Guha Thakurtha for her efforts to put Bengal’s Durga Puja in the UNESCO list.

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CM of Bengal announces 11 days holiday for Bengalis to celebrate Durga Puja 2022 in a big way

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is never at a loss for ideas. In spite of innumerable problems around her, she remains unruffled. She has declared 11 days holiday for the government staff from September 30 to October 10. She has drawn up a schedule and the celebrations will begin from September 1. On this day, there will be a mega rally in Kolkata to thank UNESCO for including Kolkata's Durga Puja on the list of ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’. The rally will start from Jorasanko Thakurbari and end at Rani Rasmoni Avenue. The immersion carnival would be in Kolkata on October 8. It was not observed for two years due to Covid-19 pandemic. Bengal CM Mamata announces Rs 60,000 grant to Durga Puja committees, 11 days holiday. The long stretch of holiday will act as incentive for the people to move out of their homes and visit tourism spots like Digha, Puri or Darjeeling to relieve boredom. It will also boost the Bengal tourism sector.

The Chief Minister also announced that her government would increase the grant to Durga Puja organizing committees in the state from Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000. She announced this during a meeting with Durga Puja organizing committee members at the city's Netaji Indoor Stadium. She also mentioned that there would be a 60 per cent discount on power tariff to organizers of Durga Puja. She added that this year's Puja would be special. There would be many visitors from abroad and the organizers must be prepared for this.

Durga Puja from outside India –

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