Lalbaugcha Raja Ganesh puja faces music; ₹3.66 lakh fine for 183 potholes

Union home minister Amit Shah also visited the Lalbaughcha Raja mandal on September 5 and offered his prayers days before the visarjan (immersion of Ganesh idols into the sea).

Three weeks after Ganesh Chathurthi, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has imposed a hefty fine of ₹3.66 lakh on the Lalbaugcha Raja Ganeshotsav Mandal for creating potholes 183 in the roads of Mumbai during the festivities, news agency ANI reported. This fine has been imposed at the rate of ₹2,000 per pit.

Crowd seen capturing Lalbaugcha Raja Ganesh idol as it was being carried for the immersion. (HT File Photo by Pratik Chorge)

Officials of the Mumbai civic body carried out an inspection of the roads after the festival ended as laid down in rules to check if organising committees have damaged the roads. In several cases, the organisers usually dig the road to affix bamboo sticks and set up barricades in the vicinity of the pandals.

The Lalbaughcha Raja is one of the most prominent, oldest and most popular Ganesh mandals in the city, attracting devotees from across the state and country during the ten-day-long festival. It had unveiled its 14-foot-tall idol of Lord Ganesha on August 29.

Union home minister Amit Shah also visited the Lalbaughcha Raja mandal on September 5 and offered his prayers days before the visarjan (immersion of Ganesh idols into the sea). He was accompanied by chief minister Eknath Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis during his two-day visit to the city. Elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation are due later this year.