On October 11, Kolkata's Gariahat, New Market and Hatibagan markets filled with shoppers buying puja outfits and materials as Durga Puja approaches, the biggest festival in Bengal. The city has been battling rain for days, but a break in the clouds since Sunday has revived the market atmosphere and allowed bamboo pandals to rise in the streets.
Police have tightened traffic controls, shutting off vehicular movement on the roads leading to Gariahat from 3 PM onward to curb the growing crowds.
Local vendor Tridib Chattopadhyay, who is buying for his daughter's first Puja after her Madhyamik exams, said the shopping frenzy remains unchanged despite the new BJP regime in West Bengal.
Rahmat Ali, a cloth‑bag seller in New Market's 'Home Market' section, noted that sales are strong this year and that no one has been asked to move yet.
The municipal corporation has warned of pending hawker evictions and parking crackdowns, but traders hope the festive surge will override administrative pressures as Navratri begins on October 11.