The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will focus on public cleanliness and well-maintained roads during the 10-day Ganpati festival. On September 3, civic chief and administrator Bhushan Gagrani visited Juhu and Versova Chowpatty beaches to review civic services and facility arrangements.
Gagrani instructed all relevant agencies to prioritize setting up Nirmalya (floral offering) collection containers, appointing medical teams, deploying lifeguards, and ensuring public cleanliness at Ganesh idol immersion sites. The Ganesh Festival begins on Saturday, September 7, 2024.
During his inspection, Gagrani interacted with citizens, sanitation workers, security personnel, and lifeguards at the beaches. He noted that the BMC has made preparations for this year's Ganesh Festival, including filling potholes and pruning trees along immersion routes.
“The administration is giving special attention to the routes used for the arrival and immersion of idols. The Municipal Corporation has already announced a list of dangerous bridges, and traffic at these locations should be managed smoothly in coordination with the police. It's crucial to work vigilantly and efficiently during the Ganesh Festival,” a BMC official stated. He added that cleanliness must be maintained on main roads and smaller streets, alleys, slums, and similar areas. “Beaches and chowpattys should be kept cleaner, and the frequency of garbage collection and transportation rounds should be increased,” Commissioner Gagrani instructed during the inspection.
Gagrani also reviewed arrangements for artificial ponds, mobile artificial pond vehicles, Nirmalya collection vehicles, the handling of dangling cables, volunteer presence at immersion sites, drinking water facilities, toilets, parking areas, German rafts, and Nirmalya collection containers. He emphasized that the Ganesh Festival is a celebration for everyone and should be conducted environmentally friendly.
The BMC plans to set up 194 artificial ponds across its jurisdiction. This approach is not only environmentally friendly but also safer. The popularity of artificial ponds has been increasing each year, with about 37 percent of idols immersed in these ponds last year. However, the civic body faces challenges with land availability for expanding the number of artificial ponds.