The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Tuesday reduced the number of days to celebrate the Ganesh Pooja publicly in the city to three, despite the state government allowing five-day celebrations, chief commissioner Gaurav Gupta said in a circular.
“Ganesha festival will not be allowed for more than three days in Bengaluru city. There should not be any procession while bringing the idol or during immersion,” he said.
The order came after the BBMP commissioner met with senior district-level officers and Bengaluru police commissioner Kamal Pant. Speaking to reporters, Gupta said the BBMP had permitted the Ganesha festival celebrations for three days last year, which will continue this year. He said the decision to have it for only three days was taken after inputs from the police, suggesting there could be large gatherings participating in the public celebrations.
Gupta also said that Ganesha idols made of plaster of Paris are banned. He asked people to immerse the traditional Ganesha idol, made up of biodegradable material at their homes in buckets or mobile tankers of the civic agency.
“Idols installed at homes should be immersed at home only or in our mobile tank. Ganeshas installed at public places should be of (a maximum of) four feet height and should be immersed in mobile tanks. We are also creating immersion tanks. We have also decided to ban immersion of idols in lakes,” Gupta said.
{{/usCountry}}“Idols installed at homes should be immersed at home only or in our mobile tank. Ganeshas installed at public places should be of (a maximum of) four feet height and should be immersed in mobile tanks. We are also creating immersion tanks. We have also decided to ban immersion of idols in lakes,” Gupta said.
{{/usCountry}}Pant said one Ganesha idol at a public place in each ward is permitted, for which the organizers will have to get the nod from the BBMP and then inform the deputy commissioner of police of the area. A BBMP official said the number of infections in the city is still on the higher side and hence decided to limit public celebrations to a maximum of three days.
Karnataka government’s decision to allow Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations in the state has already raised concerns among experts. Even though the government decided to allow celebrations only in districts with a test positivity rate of less than 2%, and strict restrictions are imposed in districts where celebrations have been allowed, experts are questioning the decision.
Dr N Manjunath, member of state Covid Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) and director of Sri Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research, said that festivals could become potential super-spreaders if a large number of people are allowed to celebrate together. “A large number of people usually come out for festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, and markets are often overcrowded. We have our Covid situation under control. Such overcrowding could undo it,” he said.
Another TAC member, on the condition of anonymity, said that even though the government has put strict restrictions in place, implementation has been a problem.