Ganesh festival to cost BMC ` 8 cr
MUMBAI: Ensuring the safe arrival and departure of Lord Ganesh in the ten-day Ganesh festival is expected to cost the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) a whopping 8 crore rupees, said municipal officials.
The cost of making all the arrangements from the first day of the Lord’s arrival with song and dance till the idol-immersion is being budgeted at Rs 8crore. The arrangements include all possible arrangements ranging from security, road diversions, immersion facilities, watchtowers, sanitation and so on.
To ensure nuisance-free celebrations, all government agencies including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), Mumbai Police, Traffic Police, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and Maharashtra State Electricity Board (MSEB) along with allied agencies and NGOs have come together to organise the Ganesha festival on a grand scale, a municipal official said.
“Last year, the BMC spent Rs 7 crore to make arrangements for the festival. But this time we are expecting it to reach Rs 8 crore,” the official said. The festival starts Saturday and will end September 22, with the immersion of Ganesh idols in water bodies.
The BMC has this time taken a proactive stand and has published a booklet of information. “An information booklet on various facilities during the festival and on the day of the immersion on September 22, has been published to facilitate better information to devotees,” the official added.
As many as 16,000 policemen will be a part of the security arrangements during the 10-day festival. “We have called for 3,000 policemen from the reserves to assist the already deployed 16,000 policemen. Sixteen companies of the State Reserve Police Force (SRPF) are also on duty,” a traffic official said. At the 27 locations where the immersions are to take place, proper security measures will be deployed. “More than 200 lifeguards and 59 motorboats will be deployed at immersion spots. Navy have been alerted in case of need if emergencies arise,” the municipal official said.
With the number of idol immersions to go high this year, arrangements have also been made to ensure safety and convenience of devotees on the last day as maximum immersions take place on the last day, the official said.
TIGHT SECURITY
“We have called for 3,000 policemen from the reserves to assist the already deployed 16,000 policemen. Sixteen companies of the SRPF are also on duty,” a traffic official said.