BMC, cops put best foot forward to bid adieu to Ganpati

As Mumbaikars prepare to bid adieu to their favourite god, Lord Ganesh, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on Tuesday said it is fully prepared for the final day immersions across the city.

Civic officials said control rooms have been set up at all important immersion spots and adequate staff has been put on duty round the clock.

“Street plates have been put at four major places such as Girgaum Chowpatty, Juhu Chowpatty, Sagar Kutir and Marve Beach to ensure that the vehicles are not stuck in the sand,”said a senior civic official.

Mayor Sunil Prabhu said, “We have made special arrangements at Girgaum Chowpatty in the wake of the sting rays attacks as a precautionary measure.”

He urged the citizens to take care of the children at the time of immersion. “The devotees should also take note of the tide timings while immersing the idols as to avoid any untoward incidents,” added Prabhu.

Worried about the danger posed by sting rays during immersion of Ganesh idols in sea on Wednesday, the BMC will keep an ambulance stationed at Girgaum Chowpatty to counter any eventuality. Last week, several devotees complained of being bitten by sting rays while immersing idols in the sea.

“We have decided to deploy a cardiac van to treat people if they get bitten by sting ray or any suspicious thing and may have a heart-related ailment,” he said.

Ganesh mandals will not face difficulty in bidding adieu to their favourite deity as roads from where immersion processions pass would be free of potholes. About two lakh Ganesh idols from pandals and households would be immersed in sea and artificial ponds on Wednesday.

The traffic police have made elaborate arrangements at Girgaum Chowpatty. Along with local police vigilance, traffic arrangements have also been made to cause least possible inconvenience to the motorists.

Also, the Mumbai traffic police will be taking special care and deploying extra policemen at spots that are crowded on the immersion day. They will be making necessary arrangements and providing diversions at spots near Girgaum, Dadar and Juhu chowpatties.

Vivek Phansalkar, joint commissioner of police (traffic), said, “Making studies and a comparison to the last year, this year we will be closing 50 roads for traffic movement. Last year, 37 roads were closed for vehicles.

Similarly, 56 roads will be made one-way, 94 roads will be made no-parking areas this year as compared to 61 last year. We will also put signage boards for motorists.”