Vasai-Virar residents immersed one-and-a-half-day Ganpati idols in 128 artificial lakes created by the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation, as the civic body’s environmentally focused immersion arrangements received a strong public response on Tuesday.
The immersion followed the installation of household Ganpati idols on Monday. Thousands of devotees reportedly chose the artificial lakes instead of natural water bodies, supporting the municipal corporation’s stated objective of preventing water pollution and protecting lakes during the festival.
The civic body had established the artificial lakes at multiple locations across the city as part of its environmental arrangements for Ganeshotsav. The initiative was intended to provide residents with designated immersion points while reducing the pressure on natural water bodies. The report did not provide a location-wise breakdown of the 128 facilities or figures for the number of idols immersed at them.
Immersion activity continued despite light rain. Crowds gathered at the designated sites, where devotees carried out the ceremony amid chants, drums and traditional musical performances. The municipal arrangement placed the artificial lakes at the centre of the first major immersion operation of the festival.
The event also required coordination between several public agencies. Police personnel were deployed across the city to manage security and help ensure that the immersion process remained orderly. Municipal employees and fire brigade personnel were stationed at the immersion locations and remained alert during the proceedings.
The deployment reflects the operational demands of festival immersions in a city where large public gatherings, traffic movement, water management and public safety converge at the same time. The use of artificial lakes gives the municipal corporation a designated system for handling household immersions, while also shifting activity away from natural water bodies.
According to the report, the cooperation of devotees helped the one-and-a-half-day immersion ceremony pass peacefully and safely. The municipal corporation’s artificial-lake programme will remain relevant through the remaining immersion days of the festival, although the supplied report does not specify whether the same 128 facilities will be used for all categories of idols or provide details of their capacity and post-immersion waste management.
The next stages of the city’s Ganeshotsav arrangements will depend on continued coordination between the municipal corporation, police, fire brigade personnel and residents at the designated immersion sites.
