Chief minister Nitish Kumar at the meet in Patna on Tuesday. Telegraph pictur

Starting this year, the state government has made licence mandatory for Durga Puja committees.

Those defying the government order would be liable for severe punishment.

The decision was taken at a review meeting chaired by chief minister Nitish Kumar on law and order through video conferencing on Tuesday.

District magistrates (DMs), superintendents of police (SPs), deputy inspectors-general and the inspectors-general were present during the meeting, ahead of the festive season. The chief minister told the officials not to allow any religious procession to be taken out without a valid licence.

“The responsibility should be fixed and the organisers should be told about the repercussions if found flouting the rules. You have to ensure that processions are taken out only through the allotted routes,” he said.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, home department principal secretary Amir Subhani said display of cartoons and images inciting communal flare-up have been banned. “The DMs and the SPs have been asked to visit the spots together, which had antecedents of communal tension,” he said.

Subhani added that the field officers have been instructed to book trouble-makers under the Crime Control Act. The sub-divisional officers and the sub-divisional police officers have been told to the organise special camps in sensitive areas and get bond papers signed by the people suspected to create law and order problem during the forthcoming festivals.

“Those defying the pledge (bond papers) will be liable for a fine ranging between Rs 50,000 and Rs 1 lakh. So far 40,000 suspected trouble makers have been identified and their signatures have been obtained on bond papers,” the principal secretary said, adding that such actions have been initiated under the provisions of Section 107 and Section 116 of the CrPC.