Tripura Govt hikes ‘Festival Grant’ ahead of Durga Puja for state govt employees

Agartala: The Tripura government, on Saturday, announced a hike for the ‘Festival Grant’, or Puja bonus for various categories of government employees and staff. With around a month left, Durga Puja festivities are set to begin from October 8.
Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha said that the increase in the bonus will benefit several employees. ” “The state government has decided to increase the festival grant for various levels of employees this year. Employees at different levels will benefit from this decision,” the CM announced on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.
According to the memorandum released by the State Finance Department, employees across the following categories would ₹2000 as the bonus:
Meanwhile, the following government employees would receive ₹2200 each as their grant:
In addition to the puja bonus, the memo further stated that the employees can avail the amount just once in a financial year.
They can avail the amount for a host of occasions such as Durga Puja, Christmas, Garia Puja, Buddha Purnima, Eid-Ul-Zuha, Eid-UI-Fitre, Guru Nanak’s Birthday, or Mahavir Jayanti.
In other news, Bangladesh’s interim government on Saturday announced plans to export 3,000 tonnes of hilsa fish to India in time for Durga Puja.
The decision comes after a revision of the earlier stance of the neighbouring country. Earlier this month, under the leadership of Professor Muhammad Yunus, the interim government had imposed a ban on hilsa exports to India in order to prioritize domestic demand, halting a tradition where Bangladesh would send hilsa as a “goodwill gesture” to its neighbouring country.
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