Welcome to PujoBuddy, a Puja Pandal Hopping Companion web application designed to help users discover Durga Puja pandals, explore nearby celebrations, plan routes, maintain personal visit lists, and enjoy a better pandal-hopping experience.

By accessing or using PujoBuddy, you agree to these Terms & Conditions and acknowledge the Privacy Policy described below. If you do not agree with these terms, please discontinue using the application.

1. About PujoBuddy

PujoBuddy provides information and tools to help users discover Durga Puja pandals, explore locations, view routes, manage their personal lists, and access festival-related information.

Pandal information, maps, directions, distances, and other details are provided for informational and navigation purposes. Information may change during the festival, and we cannot guarantee that every listing or route will always be completely accurate or up to date.

2. Information We Collect

Depending on the features you use, PujoBuddy may collect the following information:

A. Account Information

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number, if requested
• Account credentials and account-related information

B. Location Information

• Your device's current location, such as latitude and longitude, when you grant location permission.
• Location information required to show nearby pandals, calculate routes, or assist with navigation.

C. User Preferences and Activity

• Pandals added to your personal list.
• Pandals marked as visited, if you use this feature.
• Saved routes, preferences, and other information associated with your account, where applicable.

We aim to collect only the information reasonably necessary to provide the application's features.

3. Location Privacy and Storage

Your location privacy matters to us. PujoBuddy may request access to your device's location only when you use features that require it, such as finding nearby pandals or calculating a route.

• Location permission is requested through your device or browser.
• Your current GPS location is used locally on your device to support location-based features, as implemented in the application.
• PujoBuddy does not intentionally save your live GPS coordinates or location history in its application database.
• Your live location is not intended to be stored as part of your account profile.
• Location access can be disabled through your browser or device settings. Some location-based features may then become unavailable.

4. Personal Information and Database Security

When you create an account, information such as your name, email address, phone number, and account-related data may be stored in our database or authentication service, depending on the application's implementation.

We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, and destruction. These measures may include:

• Appropriate database access controls and security rules.
• Restricted administrative access.
• Secure authentication and session management.
• Secure transmission of information using HTTPS.
• Appropriate handling of passwords and authentication credentials.
• Reasonable monitoring and maintenance of application security.

Passwords should never be stored as plain text. Where Firebase Authentication or another authentication provider is used, authentication credentials should be managed by that provider rather than stored directly in the application's public database.

Although we take reasonable steps to protect information, no internet-based service can guarantee absolute security.

5. How We Use Your Information

We may use information collected through PujoBuddy to:

• Create and manage user accounts.
• Authenticate users and protect account access.
• Display saved pandals and personal visit lists.
• Synchronize supported account data across devices.
• Provide nearby-pandal discovery and route-planning features.
• Improve application performance, usability, and reliability.
• Respond to support requests and security incidents.
• Meet applicable legal obligations.

We do not claim to use your personal information for purposes beyond those disclosed in this policy.

6. Public Pandal Information and Private User Data

Pandal names, addresses, descriptions, public event details, and other publicly available festival information may be accessible without an account. Your private account information and personal lists should not be publicly accessible merely because you use PujoBuddy.

Where account synchronization is provided, your saved personal information may be stored in the database and associated with your account so that you can access it from other devices. Appropriate authorization rules must be implemented to prevent one user from viewing, modifying, or deleting another user's private data.

7. Third-Party Services

PujoBuddy may use third-party services to operate certain features, including:

• Firebase or similar authentication and database services.
• Map providers and routing services.
• Hosting and content delivery providers.
• Other services required to operate the application.

These providers may process certain information as necessary to deliver their services, subject to their own terms, privacy policies, and applicable arrangements. Users should review the relevant third-party privacy policies where appropriate. PujoBuddy does not control the independent privacy practices of third-party providers.

8. User Responsibilities

By using PujoBuddy, you agree to:

• Provide accurate information when creating an account.
• Keep your account credentials confidential.
• Use the application lawfully and responsibly.
• Avoid attempting unauthorized access to accounts, databases, or administrative features.
• Avoid uploading harmful, misleading, abusive, or unlawful content, where user submissions are supported.
• Respect the property, privacy, and instructions of pandal organizers and other visitors.
• Follow traffic rules, crowd-control instructions, police directions, and emergency restrictions while visiting pandals.

You are responsible for activity conducted through your account, subject to applicable law and circumstances beyond your reasonable control.

9. Navigation, Routes, and Festival Safety

PujoBuddy is a planning and discovery companion, not an official emergency-response service.

Routes, travel times, distances, nearby results, and location estimates may be affected by GPS accuracy, network connectivity, road closures, traffic, crowds, and third-party map data.

We do not guarantee uninterrupted access, error-free navigation, or the availability of every pandal or route.

10. Data Retention and Account Deletion

We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to provide the service, maintain account functionality, resolve disputes, meet legal obligations, or protect the application.

You may request account deletion through any deletion feature provided in the application or by contacting the support team through the contact details published by PujoBuddy.

After a valid deletion request, we will take appropriate steps to delete or anonymize personal information associated with your account within the applicable legal timeframe, subject to lawful retention requirements. Deleting an account may remove saved pandals, visit history, and other account-associated information. Information retained for legal or security reasons will be handled according to applicable requirements.

11. Children's Privacy

PujoBuddy is intended to be used responsibly by people of appropriate ages. Children should use the application with parental or guardian guidance where required by law.

We do not knowingly collect children's personal information in violation of applicable law. If you believe that a child has provided personal information unlawfully, please contact us so that the matter can be reviewed.

12. Availability and Changes

PujoBuddy may update, modify, suspend, or discontinue features to maintain or improve the service.

We may revise these Terms & Conditions or the Privacy Policy when necessary. Updated versions will be published on this page with a revised date. Where legally required, we will provide notice or obtain consent for material changes. Continued use of the application after updated terms take effect constitutes acceptance only to the extent permitted by applicable law.

13. Limitation of Liability

To the extent permitted by applicable law, PujoBuddy is not responsible for losses arising from temporary service interruptions, inaccurate third-party map data, GPS errors, changes to pandal schedules, road closures, or events outside our reasonable control.

Nothing in these terms excludes or limits any liability or consumer right that cannot legally be excluded or limited under applicable law. Users remain responsible for exercising reasonable care, following official safety instructions, and verifying important travel information.

14. Governing Law

These Terms & Conditions are intended to be governed by the applicable laws of India, including relevant data-protection and consumer-protection requirements. Any disputes will be handled by the appropriate courts or authorities having jurisdiction under applicable law.

15. Contact Information

For privacy questions, account-related requests, data correction, or account deletion, please contact:

• Application: PujoBuddy – Puja Pandal Hopping Companion
• Developer: Samyak Chakraborty
• Email: jayantachakraborty7019@gmail.com

16. Acknowledgment

By using PujoBuddy, you acknowledge that you have read and understood these Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

You understand that account information may be stored securely to provide account-related features, while live location is intended to be processed locally on your device and not stored in PujoBuddy's application database, subject to the actual implementation and disclosed third-party integrations.