Bhuleshwarcha Raja was taken to Girgaon Chowpatty for immersion on Friday, marking the end of an 11-day Ganesh festival held in subdued circumstances after two mandal office-bearers died when a 22-foot idol collapsed during its arrival procession in Mumbai.
The mandal installed a smaller idol this year following the accident on August 22. The procession had been intended to bring the annual idol to Bhuleshwar, but the collapse killed mandal president Sanket Nevashe, 33, and office-bearer Brijesh Joshi, 30. Five other people were injured in the incident, according to the report by Loksatta.
Bhuleshwarcha Raja mandal is observing its 63rd year. It has traditionally commissioned idols measuring between 20 and 23 feet, and a 22-foot idol had also been prepared for this year’s festival. After the collapse, however, the mandal decided to install only a small idol meant for worship instead of proceeding with the planned large structure.
The change altered the character of the festival in Bhuleshwar. Instead of the large idol, elaborate decoration and celebratory atmosphere associated with previous years, the mandal conducted the 11-day festival in a simpler manner. Its organisers said they continued to maintain the religious observances despite the loss of the two office-bearers.
During the immersion procession, photographs of Nevashe and Joshi were placed on both sides of the vehicle carrying the idol. Mandal members and devotees gathered to accompany the smaller idol to Girgaon Chowpatty, where it was to be immersed using the simpler arrangements decided after the accident.
The episode links Mumbai’s major public festivals to the physical and organisational risks involved in moving large temporary structures through dense neighbourhoods. Ganesh processions use public roads and culminate at designated waterfront immersion points, bringing together religious groups, volunteers, pedestrians, vehicles and city agencies. In this case, the mandal’s decision to abandon the large idol was a direct response to a fatal failure during that movement.
The immersion also brought the festival’s immediate public programme to a close while keeping the August accident at the centre of the mandal’s observances. Devotees called for Bhuleshwarcha Raja to return early next year, but the report did not provide details of any future decision on the idol’s size or procession arrangements.
