Kharchi Puja 2026: Significance, History & Rituals of the Festival

99Pandit Ji

Last Updated:September 2, 2025

Kharchi Puja is a century-old traditional festival of Tripura that is celebrated with great enthusiasm and faith.

It is performed annually on the eighth day of the new moon in July. In 2026, the Kharchi puja will fall on July 21.

Being a local festival of Tripura, the puja includes the worship of Chaturdasa Devata and extends for a week. It is mainly celebrated in the Chaturdasaha Devata Temple, Agartala.

The puja indicates cleansing, regeneration, elimination of sins in the past, and welcoming a novel spiritual power.

The festival includes significant rituals, communal feasts, traditional music, and people’s strong faith.

It represents a unique combination of Hindu beliefs and tribal practices, thus being a very exceptional celebration.

With 99Pandit, let’s gain more insight into Kharchi Puja 2026. We will discuss its significance, history, major deity, and the rituals done during the festival.

Date & Duration of Kharchi Puja 2026

Karachi Puja Date in 2026: The next year, the Kharchi Puja will be held on July 21.

Duration of the festival: The time period of the puja is seven days, during which different rituals are done, like offering and sacred baths.

How the festival date is decided: From older days, the Kharchi puja is observed on the eighth day (Ashtami) on the Shukla Paksha in the month of Ashad as per the Hindu calendar.

Understanding the Kharchi Puja Festival

Kharchi Puja is a popular type of puja in Tripura that is a combination of both Hindu and Tripura culture.

The word “Kharchi” has been taken from “Khar”, which refers to sins, and “chi”, which means cleaning.

When put together, the word refers to the cleaning of our sins. Basically, the puja is done to worship Mother Earth and the fourteen deities. They are regarded as the guardians of Tripura and its people.

It is a seven-day-long ritual that includes bathing of deities, purifying the post-menstrual period of Mother Earth’s menstruation, and offering prayers.

On the main festive day, the fourteen deities are taken to the river “Saidra” by members of Chantai. The gods are bathed with holy water and then return to the Chaturdasa Devata temple.

The thing that makes it a more beautiful and popular festival is the way it beautifully blends tribal community tradition with Hindu practices.

Kharchi Puja represents purification, peace, and the bond between devotees and the divine power.

The Chaturdasha Devata – The Fourteen Deities

Significance of Kharchi Puja 2026

For people of Tripura, Kharchi Puja is an essential festival in both cultural and
spiritual terms.

Let’s light some candles to reveal its meaning and the virtues that it encompasses:

1. Purification & Regeneration

At its essence, Kharchi Puja revolves around purification. For this reason, the bathing of Chaturdasha Devata is regarded as the elimination of past faults, impurities, and rebirth of nature and human life. It establishes harmony, equilibrium, and reinforces the community.

2. Honouring the Chaturdasha Devata

Chaturdasha Devata, the fourteen prime deities of puja, are said to be guardians of the people and land of Tripura.

Conducting prayers and offerings to them during puja gives devotees celestial grace, prosperity, and protection against evil energy.

3. Blend of Tribal and Hindu Traditions

Kharchi puja is different due to the way it combines the tribal traditions with Hindu ceremonies.

Such puja show the cultural diversity of Tripura and show how a single festival unites the different customs.

4. Community Celebration and Togetherness

Kharchi puja is not only an event but also a festival that brings different communities together.

All people, including locals and neighbours, gather together so that they can celebrate fairs, prayers, and food. The festival unites people closer and strengthens their relationships.

5. Preserve Cultural Identity

It is a celebration with a touch of Tripura’s culture. Their age-old traditions carried through the Kharchi Puja provide deeper meaning about their customs and preserve the roots of their culture by passing it from generation to generation.

History & Origin of Kharchi Puja

Kharchi Puja is deeply rooted in the tribal traditions of the Tripura people. As the word Kharchi itself is associated with cleansings, the puja is performed after the Ama Pechi.

It is a fifteen-day period, when Mother Earth is said to menstruate. Activities such as ploughing and digging are not permitted at this time as the earth becomes unclean during this period.

That’s why Kharchi Puja in Tripura is done to clean the Earth and worship the main deities. The fourteen gods also remain locked within a room for the whole year.

They only come out for devotees during the seven days of this puja. On the first day of the puja, they are taken to the river “Saidra” and bathed in the holy water.

After coming back to the temple, they are worshipped by the royal priest and taken to a separate room covered with a net.

Later on the seventh day, devotees can worship and offer sacrifices such as chickens and goats.

With passing time, the festival became more popular under the patronage of Tripura’s royal family, particularly with the construction of Chaturdasha Temple in 1761.

After the tribal festival, both tribal priests (Chantai) and Hindu Brahmins conduct the rituals together.

Chaturdasha Devta Temple – The Sacred Home of Fourteen Gods

The Chaturdash Devta Temple plays a great role in the Kharchi Puja. It is a Hindu temple located in Agartala and built in 1761 by King Krishna Manikya. Inside the temple, there are fourteen deities, also collectively called Chaturdasha Devta.

These deities are ceremoniously worshipped during the Kharchi Puja festival and are commonly known as Chaudah Devata Mandir.

The main attraction of the temple is its fourteen major deities and the celebration held during the Kharchi Puja.

It was the age-old tradition started by the King of Tripura and is still carried forward by the people of Tripura.

Thousands of devotees visit this temple every year to be part of the Kharchi festive celebration.

It is one of the popular temples where thousands of devotees visit annually to celebrate the Kharchi festival.

Rituals and Traditions of Kharchi Puja

Being a seven-day festival, the Kharchi Puja includes various rituals and traditions. Below we have mentioned some of them:

1. Bathing of the Deities

The ceremonial bath of the fourteen gods is the main ritual of the whole puja. Being done on the first day, the idols of god are taken from the inner sanctum to the river and are cleaned. This act represents purification and removal of sins.

2. Offering and Animal Sacrifices

After the deities are brought back to the temple, the tribal rituals are done by the royal priest of Tripura.

As part of customs, sacrifice is also done of animals such as he-goats, pigeons, and chickens.

Other than that, offerings like fruits, flowers, and sweets are also offered by devotees to seek their blessings.

3. Devotional Songs and Folk Performances

Other than offering and prayers, the puja also includes Tripura community traditional dances, folk music, and devotional songs.

People dress up in different attire and share mythological stories related to the temple and festival.

4. Community Gathering and Feasting

People from all religions and castes become a part of the Kharchi festival. They often prepare community events and offer various types of food to all the visitors. That’s how the temple makes tribal cultural identity more popular.

The Role of the Royal Family In Kharchi Puja

The royal family of Tripura, historically known as the Manikya dynasty, has played a central role in the festival of Khrachi Puja. Its rituals, which priests follow, are assigned by the royal households.

Even after Tripura got into the list of the Indian Union in 1949 and with the decline of the monarchy, the existence of the royal family remains important.

You will often see the members of the royal family inaugurating the ceremonies and attending the main rituals and events of Khrachi Puja.

Things To Keep In Mind for Kharchi Puja 2026

Planning to attend the Kharchi Puja 2026? Here are some travel tips that you can consider:

• Dress up in modest clothes such as a Kurti or a dhoti as a way of respect.
• Do not touch the idols of temples without permission.
• Remove your shoes outside, performing and taking part in prayers.
• Make a prior booking in Agartala, as the crowd is huge during the festival.
• Be humble and respect all the local customs, especially at the time of ritual.
• Avoid taking photos as they are restricted in certain areas.
• Take part in their cultural events and fairs to truly experience their heritage.
• You can even explore the nearby areas like the Ujjayanta Palace and Neermahal in Tripura.
• Plan your visit in July as the Kharchi Puja is observed during that period only.

Conclusion

Kharchi Puja is not just a carried forward tradition but a festival displaying a blend of two different customs and Tripura’s tradition.

From holy baths to fourteen deities to cleaning Mother Earth after Ama Pechi, the festival holds various rituals that make it really unique from others.

In a world where customs are usually lost, the Khrachi Puja tells us how cultural practices are kept and celebrated. Kharchi Puja will be conducted again on July 21 in 2026.

The doors of the Chautardasha Devata temple will be opened again for devotees and will become a part of their celebration. It represents the purification of Mother Earth and humans’ past sins.

Therefore, the puja is not only to honour the fourteen deities but also to Mother Earth. For more such informative blogs, you can visit our site 99Pandit.

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