Mumbai bids farewell to Lord Ganesh; processions wind through city roads

Mumbai, More than 2,700 idols were immersed in Mumbai by Tuesday afternoon on the 11th and concluding day of the Ganesh festival as processions accompanied by troupes of `dhol-tasha’ or drum players set off in the city and other parts of Maharashtra. Devotees lined the lanes of Lalbaug in central Mumbai, braving the scorching sun to bid farewell to the famous `Lalbaugcha Raja’ Ganesh. Processions from various parts of Mumbai including Fort, Mazgaon, Byculla, Dadar and Chembur were making their way towards the Arabian Sea and water bodies within the city for immersion, marking the end of this year’s festivities. No untoward incident was reported anywhere, said officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation . More than 2,700 idols were immersed in the sea and artificial ponds as of 3 pm. They included 2,614 households Ganapati idols, 81 sarvajanik mandals idols and 12 idols of Goddess Gauri. As of afternoon, 1,009 idols were immersed in the artificial ponds provided by the BMC to avoid pollution of natural water bodies. The procession of `Lalbaug Raja’ Ganpati was heading for Shroff Building junction for `pushpa-vrushti’ before reaching Girgaon Chowpatty or beach for immersion. Chinchpokli-based `Chintamani Ganapati’ was about to reach the Shroff building junction, while several other Ganapati processions had reached Lalbaug area. BEST, the civic bus service, has diverted buses on several routes on account of immersion processions. Western Railway and Central Railway would be running special late night trains for the convenience of devotees returning home after immersion processions, officials said. More than 24,000 police personnel have been deployed on the streets for security and crowd management. Thousands of household and ‘sarvajanik’ Ganesh idols will be immersed at 204 artificial ponds across the city, along with 69 natural water bodies like Girgaon, Dadar, Juhu, Marve and Aksa beaches. The BMC has deployed more than 12,000 employees and set up 71 control rooms to manage the processions. It has also posted 761 lifeguards and deployed 48 speed boats at the beaches as a safety measure, and citizens have been advised to avoid entering deep waters. It has also cautioned citizens about blue button jellyfish and stingrays while immersing idols in the sea. Police are also using drones for surveillance at key immersion sites such as the beaches at Girgaon, Dadar, Bandra, Juhu Versova and Madh Island, and also at Powai lake. They would also be monitoring the footage of 8,000 CCTV cameras. The State Reserve Police Force, Quick Response Teams, Riot Control Police, Home Guards and Maharashtra Security Force have also been roped in, officials said. More than 2,500 traffic police personnel are ensuring smooth movement of vehicles across the city. Some roads have been closed for traffic. For efficient coordination, 192 control rooms have been established across various administrative divisions, and 66 observation towers have been erected to monitor key areas. To promote eco-friendly celebrations, the BMC has introduced a QR code system providing information on nearby artificial ponds. Citizens can scan the code or visit https://portal.mcgm.gov.in for directions to these ponds via Google Maps.
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