Pune Municipal Corporation has completed arrangements at immersion ghats and designated facilities for citizens bringing Ganesh idols for immersion on the festival’s first and a half day, with a focus on crowd management, sanitation, idol collection and environmentally safer practices.
The civic administration has prepared artificial immersion tanks, iron tanks, nirmalya collection centres and idol collection arrangements at the designated locations. The facilities are intended to reduce pressure on natural water bodies and provide residents with organised alternatives during the first major immersion day of the Ganesh festival.
The PMC has appealed to devotees to use the artificial immersion tanks provided by the civic body instead of immersing idols in natural water sources. The administration has also said that arrangements have been made to provide necessary services to citizens at each stage of the immersion process.
Ganesh idol immersion in Pune takes place on the first and a half day, the fifth day, the seventh day and Anant Chaturdashi. Since large crowds are expected at the immersion ghats on these occasions, the municipal administration has prepared a plan based on its regional offices. The arrangements are therefore intended to be used across multiple immersion days rather than only for the first day of the festival.
The civic body has linked the immersion arrangements to waste management and environmental protection. Alongside idol immersion facilities, it has established nirmalya collection points and systems for collecting idols. Nirmalya refers to floral and other religious offerings generated during worship, which can otherwise add to the volume of waste reaching public spaces and water bodies.
The PMC’s previous-year figures indicate the scale of the operation. In 2025, 113,136 idols were immersed in tanks constructed by the municipal corporation, while 362,319 idols were immersed in iron tanks. A further 178,955 idols were immersed through idol collection centres. Together, these facilities handled 654,410 Ganesh idols during the festival.
The municipal corporation also collected 923,398 kilograms of nirmalya during the 2025 Ganesh festival. Through voluntary organisations, it collected around 39 tonnes of shadu clay and arranged for its reuse. An initiative to make incense sticks from collected nirmalya was also conducted.
These figures form the operational background to this year’s arrangements, as the PMC prepares for repeated surges in visitors at immersion locations. The administration has said that crowd planning and environmentally safer immersion practices will remain central to its preparations across the festival’s immersion days.
The PMC has asked citizens to use the artificial tanks and other facilities provided at the designated immersion locations. The arrangements will continue through the remaining immersion days, including the fifth day, seventh day and Anant Chaturdashi.
