Mumbai Police chief meets Ganesh mandal representatives

Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh held a meeting with representatives of various Ganesh mandals from the city and sought their views on how they plan to organise the Ganpati festival celebration this year in the wake of COVID-19 outbreak. The 10-day festival begins on 'Ganesh Chaturthi', which falls on August 22 this year.

During the meeting, which took place on Tuesday at the commissioner's office, the mandals assured the police chief that they will follow all orders of the Maharashtra government and if directed, they will not organise the celebrations this year, a representative of one of the mandals said. Representatives of some of the prominent Ganesh mandals, including Mumbaicha Raja, Ganesh Galli Utsav Mandal, Lalbaughcha Raja, Tejukaya Mandal, Chintamani Mandal, were present at the meet.

"During the over 30-minute meeting, the commissioner sought our views about the forthcoming Ganeshotsav. We said we will follow whatever is the decision of the state government," Ganesh Galli Mandal secretary Swapnil Parab said, adding that people's health was top priority at this time.

In the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, the GSB Ganeshotsav Samiti in Wadala area of Mumbai has postponed the celebration to 'Magh Shudh Chaturthi' in February next year, the samiti's trustee secretary Mukund Kamat said last month. The decision was taken in view of the health and safety of the public, he said. Ganeshotsav is the most popular festival in Maharashtra. The pandals set up by various mandals in Mumbai and other places attract thousands of devotees during the 10-day celebration.