Ganesha gets joyful send-off

HYDERABAD: Devotees poured out into the streets on Sunday to join a joyous, raucous processions to immerse thousands of idols of the elephant-headed deity at designated water bodies in the twin cities. The spotlight, as ever, was on the 40-feet Khairatabad Ganesha idol and the one from Balapur.

The immersion of idols may continue till noon on Monday.

The energy pent up over the last year due to Covid-19 pandemic was fully visible on the streets, while Covid-19 preventive measures were totally ignored. People were oblivious of the tense legal battle that preceded the immersion procession, with the state government going to the Supreme Court to get permission to immerse plaster of Paris idols in Hussainsagar for one last time.

Things could change next year, when the assurances given by the state government to the Supreme Court take effect.

The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) for the first time dug the Hussainsagar lake near the shore on the NTR Marg side to completely immerse the 40-feet Khairatabad Ganesha idol. The Supreme Court had allowed a symbolic immersion, on condition that idols should be taken immediately out of the lake, which means the idol should not be left in the water. Following the court's directions and considering religious sentiments, the authorities dug up the banks of Hussainsagar 20-foot deep and ensured that the Khairatabad Ganesha was completely immersed.

The procession of 'Panchamukha Rudra Maha Ganapati' began at 9 am after a two-hour effort to shift the idol to the truck and welding the platform to keep it stable. This apart, tree branches at Telephone Bhavan slowed the procession by 40 minutes. The tree branches were damaged a bit. The procession passed through Khairatabad, Lakdikapul, Saifabad, past the Telugu Talli flyover, Lumbini Park to NTR Marg. The idol was immersed at 3.19 pm amid chanting of “Ganapati Bappa Moriya…” Thereafter, immersion of smaller idols continued and more people walked towards the site. The drizzle which was followed by heavy rain from afternoon to evening did not stop the crowd.

The authorities did not allow other idols on the NTR Marg until the conclusion of the Khairatabad Ganesha idol immersion which caused severe traffic jams. After the immersion of 'Bada Ganesh', Balapur Ganesh immersion was concluded at around 7.40 pm.

The arterial roads leading to Hussainsagar were intermittently filled with flower petals and colour papers, indicating that the idols passed by the route to the immersion site. Barricades were placed on the roads leading to the site to stop vehicles. People either parked their vehicles a little away, or used metro rail to reach the closest point while some other devotees went on foot. Children and adults blew horns, and occasional vehicles, two-wheelers and four-wheelers, tried to break through the crowd by constantly honking.

Thousands gathered in the procession braving Covid-19 threat at Telephone Bhavan-Secretariat-NTR Marg at the immersion spot. Though the GHMC authorities notified 32 lakes for immersion, cranes were deployed only at three lakes including Hussainsagar, Saroornagar and IDL lake in Kukatpally.

This year, while the High Court banned the immersion of PoP idols in Hussainsagar Lake, the state government got the ban lifted by approaching the apex court.

Despite field inspections by animal husbandry minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav, Mayor Gadwal R. Vijaylakshmi, police commissioner Anjani Kumar and an aerial survey by home minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali and Director General of Police M. Mahendar Reddy, Covid-19 norms were blatantly flouted during the procession and immersion.

The GHMC, Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority, Hyderabad Metropolitan Water supply & Sewerage Board, Hyderabad and Cyberabad police, fire brigade and SRPF (State Reserve Police Force) worked in tandem to ensure peaceful immersion. About 30,000 idols in the core city and another 45,000 idols on the city outskirts were immersed.