HYDERABAD: Stating that measures have been taken to ensure the festivities conclude without any untoward incident, Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav on Wednesday said that all arrangements are in place for Ganesh Nimajjanam on Friday.
Speaking after inspecting the arrangements being made for the immersion at Tank Bund, Srinivas Yadav said the State government was celebrating all festivals in a grand manner to preserve Telangana’s culture and traditions.
“Around 38,000 idols have been installed in GHMC limits and the government is making all arrangements by spending crores. All departments like the GHMC, Police, Water Board, Endowments, Tourism, Health, R&B and Revenue, among others, are working in tandem for smooth conduct of the festivities,” Srinivas Yadav said.
For ‘dhatti’, stages have been set up at various places from Balapur to Lal Darwaza, Charminar, Afzalgunj, Begum Bazar, MJ Market etc, where the procession would be welcomed. “Khairatabad Ganesh, which is unique, is made of clay and installed this year as part of environmental protection efforts,” he said.
He added that he does not understand why the organisers of Ganesh festival are confused. “While the BJP government in Karnataka has imposed restrictions on idols over 8 ft in Bengaluru, our government has not imposed any restrictions here,” he said.
Srinivas Yadav highlighted that GHMC sanitation staff are on duty at all mandapams and working hard to keep the surroundings clean. “More than 10,000 sanitation workers will perform duties in three shifts during the immersion. Apart from installing CCTVs especially for the immersion, police personnel from other parts of the State will also be appointed for security,” the Minister said.
Darshan suspended temporarily
Darshan of Khairatabad Ganesh has been temporarily suspended by the festival committee. The committee members took this decision due to heavy rains lashing the city on Wednesday afternoon. As a result, low-lying areas have been flooded in many places.
BGUS calls off hunger strike
A day after members of the Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi (BGUS) started begun an indefinite hunger strike demanding that the State government make arrangements for immersion of Ganesh idols at the Hussainsagar, BGUS general secretary Bhagwant Rao and other members called off the strike at around 8.45 pm on Wednesday. Swamy Sthita Pragnananda Saraswathi offered lemon juice to Dr Rao to signify the end of the strike
Stages set for dhatti
For ‘dhatti’, stages have been set up at various places from Balapur to Lal Darwaza, Charminar, Afzalgunj, Begum Bazar, Moazzam Jahi Market and other areas where the procession would be welcomed