It’s raining Ganeshas in Hyderabad
HYDERABAD: It’S celebration time! Ganesh Chaturthi is here and the revelry has spilled onto the streets. This year, festivities are likely to be bigger as over 1 lakh street Ganesh idols have been registered with Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samiti. Immersions would happen at 34 lakes across the city, the biggest being Hussainsagar, Saroornagar, Safilguda and Durgam Cheruvu.
of the festival. Ganeshas lined
up in wait of takers in the city
A major chunk of this will be dumped into Hussainsagar and 82 cranes have been commissioned to the lake for this purpose. “We are coordinating with all the departments to ensure smooth and safe celebrations. A total of 18 departments have come together for the purpose, including R&B, water, electricity, revenue and police,” said Ravinuthala Shashidhar, secretary of the Samithi.
The government has also given free electricity to all the committees for setting up of idols in myriad of shapes and sizes. Many societies, this time around, seem to have gone eco-friendly and installed clay-Ganeshas. Leading the way is the Maharashtra Mandal, which would install a humble 4-feet-tall clay Ganesh at Ramkote after a kilometer long procession.
“We would be immersing the Ganesh here itself,” said Ambarish, the organiser. They would also be organising a performance of the Maharashtrian dance form, Dhol Tasha. Another highlight this year, apart from the tallest Ganesh at Khairatabad, would be the blinking-Ganesh at Balapur. Standing tall at 18.5 feet, this Ganesha blinks at devotees.
Use eco-friendly Ganesh idols, says Khammam district collector
Khammam District collector RV Karnan called upon people to use eco-friendly Ganesh idols instead of Plaster of Paris (POP) idols to avoid pollution. Speaking to Express on Tuesday, he said that elaborate arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of Ganesh festival. Police personnel have also been deployed to avoid untoward incidents during the festival days across the district. Arrangements have been made for the immersion of Ganesh idols in Prakashnagar area in Khammam town, the collector said.