Hyderabad’s Ganesh immersion waste removal began around Hussain Sagar on Sunday, with the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority deploying about 100 carting specialists across 38 immersion sites to dismantle, segregate and remove debris left after the festival.
The operation started a day after the immersion concluded and is also being carried out at other water bodies where idols were immersed during the past week. An HMDA official said the work could take at least two to three days because more than one lakh Ganesh idols were immersed across the city.
The waste is being handled in separate categories, including structural components, decorative materials and ritual offerings brought by devotees. According to the official, large idols commonly contain heavy iron rods, metal pipes and steel wires that provide internal support and prevent them from collapsing. Timber planks, plywood bases and bamboo sticks are also used for backdrops, limbs and platforms.
The dismantling process also involves removing natural coconut husk fibres wrapped around wooden frames and separating satin and synthetic fabrics used to dress the idols. These materials add to the variety of waste that must be manually taken apart before it can be moved or recovered.
“Waste removal began on Sunday morning and may take at least two to three days after more than one lakh Ganesh idols were immersed,” the HMDA official said.
The scale and composition of the debris make the operation more than a routine street-cleaning exercise. Crews must work across multiple designated immersion points and sort materials that have different handling and recovery requirements. The operation is taking place around Hussain Sagar as well as other city and suburban water bodies used during the festival.
The sites have also drawn rag pickers and others searching through the debris for materials that can be sold to local scrap dealers. They were seen recovering iron and aluminium from the discarded idol structures, creating an informal layer of material recovery alongside the official cleanup.
The removal effort follows the immersion of thousands of idols and focuses on clearing the immediate debris from water-body edges and immersion locations. HMDA’s stated timeline is two to three days, with the agency’s teams working in three shifts across the 38 sites around Hussain Sagar.
