The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation has ordered officials to complete road repairs and address hazardous electrical conditions near all 195 Durga Puja pandals within seven days, ahead of the 2026 festive rush. The directive followed a preparatory meeting chaired by BMC Mayor Sulochana Das and attended by civic officials, police representatives, utility agencies and puja committee members.
The order responds to concerns raised by organisers over pothole-ridden roads, malfunctioning streetlights, low-hanging tree branches and loose or dangling electrical wires around festival locations. Civic officials have been directed to carry out immediate ground-level interventions so that devotees, pedestrians and vehicles can move safely around the pandals and along procession routes.
The BMC has also imposed a freeze on fresh road excavations ahead of the celebrations. GAIL, WATCO and TP Central Odisha Distribution Limited have been restricted to completing repairs on roads that have already been dug up. The instruction is intended to prevent additional road disruption in areas that will experience higher pedestrian and vehicle movement during the festival.
TPCODL has separately been instructed to repair loose and hanging electrical wires. The utility-related work is expected to address safety risks around public spaces and routes used by devotees and processions. The civic administration has also warned that agencies or individuals obstructing public spaces by dumping construction debris or building materials along roadsides will face penalties.
Traffic and crowd management measures are being coordinated with the Commissionerate Police. Deputy Commissioner of Police Saravana Vivek M said the 195 pandals have been grouped into A, B and C categories according to crowd sensitivity and expected footfall. The classification will be used to organise security and operational arrangements across the city.
Authorities have identified 36 designated parking zones to manage traffic near major pandals. The arrangement is intended to reduce congestion around high-footfall celebration sites and provide designated areas for vehicles during the festive period. The source report did not provide the locations or capacity of individual parking zones.
Preparations are also under way for idol immersion. Five temporary ponds have been constructed along the Kuakhai and Daya rivers, while approach roads to the immersion sites are being widened. High-mast lighting, JCB machines and heavy-duty cranes have been stationed at the locations for the final Visarjan operations.
The authorities have further directed puja committees to maintain cultural decorum during celebrations and immersion processions. The guidelines specifically prohibit obscene dance performances. The seven-day deadline for civic repairs, the road-excavation freeze and the deployment of equipment at immersion sites form part of the preparations being coordinated for Durga Puja 2026.
