GUWAHATI, Sept 19 � The Eco-tourism Society of North East is going to conduct the fifth Prakriti Award 2014 (the best environment-friendly Durga Puja of Guwahati) to generate awareness about preservation of the environment and tourism resources of the region.
The contest is spanned across five phases starting from registration, pre, ongoing and post Puja surveys and finally the award distribution.
It needs to be mentioned that the organisers collect data on the history, theme, uniqueness and various measures that the Durga Puja committees take to minimise the negative impacts on the environment. The NGO also encourages and motivates the puja committees to have eco- friendly idols and to design their pandals on themes related to tourism and environment.
Puja committees having proper arrangements related to clean drinking water, dustbins, fire extinguishers, trained volunteers for managing traffic, etc., get added advantage during the competition. The Award ensures that all puja committees maintain proper guidelines regarding cleanliness and hygiene.
�However, this season we have decided to enrol only those Puja committees matching all the criteria for the competition. Emphasis will not only be on eco-friendly idols but will also be on eco-friendly surroundings, decorations, and pandals,� said an official of the NGO.
Last year Maligaon Kalibari Durgotsav Samity won the prestigious title.
Phase one of the competition will have registrations of Durga Puja Committees. Registration will be free for all the puja committees till September 25.
Phase two will be �Pre Durga Puja Survey� from September 27 to 29 wherein nine Durga Puja committees will be shortlisted as finalists for the award.
Phase three will include �Ongoing Durga Puja Survey� from September 30 to October 3. This phase will be the most crucial phase for the entire competition. An expert team will judge the puja committees based on environment-related parameters.
Phase four will have post Puja survey from October 5 to 21 wherein the post Puja activities of the Puja committees like immersion of idols, removal of the pandals etc., will be monitored.
The award will be presented on October 23.
