No immersion of Ganesh idols from Tank Bund side in Hussain Sagar

HYDERABAD: Immersion of Ganesh idols will not be allowed from the renovated Tank Bund side. However, clay idols, including the 50-foot-tall Khairatabad Ganesh, will be immersed in Hussain Sagar lake. The Hyderabad City police are making arrangements for immersion of Ganesh idols across the city, including the 74 makeshift pools meant only for immersion.

Courts had directed that the plaster of Paris idols should not be immersed in city lakes.

The decision, as per the reports, follows an earlier direction from the Telangana High Court that immersion of idols made of Plaster of Paris (PoP) should not be permitted in water bodies within the GHMC and HMDA limits.

But confusion prevails on the issue with the Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi insisting that immersions would go on as usual in Hussain Sagar and everywhere else. Heightening the suspense, the authorities too remained non-committal till Thursday.

The famous Khairathabad Ganesh idol would be allowed to be immersed in Hussain Sagar, keeping in view the magnitude of groundwork and preparations needed for its shifting.

As per the reports, the authorities were trying to compensate for this loss by setting up make-shift immersion avenues at several places in the twin cities. They are also enlightening the general public and the organisers of Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi to ensure immersions only at these places.

The Khairathabad Ganesh idol, which stands 50-feet tall this year, has significantly been made of clay this time around.

Speaking to NewsTAP, Bhagwant Rao, General Secretary, Bhagyanagar Ganesh Utsav Samithi, dismissed reports in a section of media stating that idol immersions had been banned in lakes within the city limits.

He said that there had been no order to this effect so far, be it from a court, government or authorities. Nimajjanam of Ganesh idols will go on as usual in the city, he asserted without going deep into details.

The issue kicked up a big storm last year itself after the Central Pollution Control Board imposed a ban on immersion of PoP idols in Hussain Sagar. The Telangana Government was forced to approach the Supreme Court which eventually allowed it with an 'only-this-time' condition.