Rajamahendravaram: The Rajahmundry Ganesh Utsav Committee, which has been installing a unique Ganesh idol each year for the past 15 years, announced that this year’s idol will be “Shubhankara Mahaganapati,” a female form of Lord Ganesha, made from turmeric threads.

At a press conference held at the Pushkar Ghat on Monday, Committee organiser Jakkampudi Vijayalakshmi, along with representatives Challa Shankara Rao, Polasanapalli Hanumantha Rao, Byrraju Prasada Raju, and Nandepu Srinivas, addressed the media. They recalled that the committee was formed in 2010 and has since installed idols made from various materials like glass bangles, pens, Vibhuti, turmeric and kumkum, and coins. A special feature of these celebrations is that the materials used to create the idol are distributed as prasad to devotees on the final day.

This year’s idol will be an 18-foot-tall “Shubhankara Mahaganapati” in the form of “Vinayaki,” a female representation of Ganesha, made from cotton and turmeric threads. They mentioned that the Puranas, including the Skanda, Vayu, Linga, and Matsya Puranas, mention a female form of Ganesha, known as Vinayaki or Shakti Ganapati.

The celebrations will begin on the 27th with a Ganapati Homa, and the idol immersion will take place on the morning of September 7, followed by the distribution of the turmeric cotton threads. Challa Shankara Rao, President of the Aryapuram Cooperative Urban Bank, and former corporator Polasanapalli Hanumantha Rao recalled that the committee was founded by the late Jakkampudi Ramamohana Rao, the then minister.

They also mentioned that prasad is brought daily from the local Ayyappa temple during these Navaratri days. Committee representative Byrraju Prasada Raju noted that the committee set a Guinness World Record in its very first year by preparing a six-ton laddu and achieved another record in the second year. He noted that the celebrations are conducted in an eco-friendly manner.

Nandepu Srinivas and Vakacharla Krishna also participated in the meeting.