Orderly send-off

Full-throated chants of ‘Ganapati Bappa Moriya’ amidst thumping and beats of ‘Teen Maar’ reverberated through the streets of Hyderabad and Secunderabad as the populace, steeped in devotion, bid adieu to the 10-day Ganesh festival, which was marked by singing, chanting or playing of devotional songs and religious rituals in thousands of richly decorated pandals. 15,000 police personnel were deployed in view of security alerts

Hyd Hans Team

Tens of thousands of people gathered at Hussain Sagar and other lakes across the city to witness the immersion of thousands of thematically conceived and creatively sculpted idols of Lord Ganesh in diverse settings and in varying shapes and sizes. Intermitted rains did not dampen the legions, with one group in Barkatpura (where it rained heavily), literally soaked in devotion, proceeding to Hussain Sagar lake dancing and singing en route in dripping clothes.

According to estimates, around 10 lakh people gathered at the Hussain Sagar alone and about 65,000-70,000 idols were immersed on the last day. Earlier in the day, GHMC Commissioner MT Krishna Babu, who inspected the proceedings, said, “Cranes, medical camps and water points have been arranged along the routes of the main processions. There is a Central Control Department at Dar-Ul-Shifa to coordinate the activities. We want to complete the idol immersions by 9 am on Thursday. We might extend it by a few more hours.”

In all, 62 stationary cranes were deployed by the GHMC along with 71 mobile cranes across the city. Of these, 33 were allocated exclusively at points on the Tank Bund. Two lifeguards were assigned for each crane. The corporation spent Rs 5-6 crore for the crane services. Mobile toilets were set up along the stretch of the Tank Bund for the general public’s convenience. The HMWSSB distributed around two lakh free water packets through various points along the routes of main processions.

The services of around 2,300 safai karamcharis of the GHMC were used to clear waste and discarded puja samagri around the Tank Bund and on the Necklace Road. As soon as a procession passed, the karamcharis were seen sweeping the roads. After fishing out puja material from the lake and its environs, they dumped it on a truck handled by the HMDA. This process continued at a brisk pace throughout the day. The GHMC also set up two camps, one near Tank Bund and the other one at NTR Marg. The camps housed medical emergency personnel.

The entire proceedings of Ganesh Nimmajan were peaceful largely because of the meticulous planning and coordinated efforts by the police, GHMC, HMDA, HMWS&SB and other civic agencies. The security arrangements were topnotch at Tank Bund, where some 15,000 police personnel were deployed at around 500 hotspots, backed by 800 CCTV cameras.

This year too, security was stepped up following intelligence alerts. Acting on just one alert on Wednesday, in all 20 teams of the bomb squad, each consisting of two members, were seen examining even garbage and other debris along the Tank Bund, but it turned out to be a hoax. Teams were deployed in each of the five zones of Hyderabad. Although there was heavy security to cordon off Tank Bund and all roads leading to it, there was a bit of confusion due to coordination problems relating to Law and Order and Traffic Police personnel. Some of them were clueless as to where they have to divert vehicles for parking.

Traffic restrictions, scheduled to begin at 9 am, were implemented strictly only after 11 am at Tank Bund. The Roads & Buildings Department barricaded the entire area and the Border Security Force personnel were deployed for patrolling. The entire Telugu Thalli Flyover was blocked. People who had come up to that point to witness the proceedings were in a bit of hassle as there were no designated parking areas. It was only at 2-00 pm that the parking lots were allotted at Kavadiguda X Roads for two wheelers and at Dharna Chowk for four wheelers. As there was restricted movement of buses in areas around Tank Bund, most people had to rely on autos who charged double the normal fare.