Hyderabad Ganesh immersion ends after 48-hour operation; police flag new concerns
Hyderabad's Ganesh immersion procession concluded Saturday after a 48-hour operation involving more than 28,000 police personnel, with officials reporting a peaceful event and flagging issues for next year.
The Ganesh immersion procession in Hyderabad drew to a close on Saturday afternoon, capping a 48-hour operation during which lakhs of devotees filled the city's central stretches and more than 28,000 police personnel were deployed for security and crowd management.
City Police Commissioner V. C. Sajjanar said the festivities concluded peacefully, though the final phase ran well into Saturday as the heavy turnout slowed the movement of idols towards Hussainsagar.
The immersion schedule slipped as families gathered in large numbers around Tank Bund, NTR Marg, Necklace Road, Liberty and Moazzam Jahi Market. Traffic restrictions stayed in force along the main procession routes on Saturday until the last idols were cleared.
According to the Commissioner, planning for the festival began three months in advance, with coordination across government departments and other stakeholders under way for the past two months. Around 30 lakh devotees visited the Khairatabad Bada Ganesh during the festival, while about 15 lakh offered prayers at the Balapur Ganesh. Both the number of idols and devotee turnout rose this year, he said.
The Khairatabad and Balapur idols were immersed ahead of schedule with the cooperation of their festival committees, but some other pandal organisers started their journeys late, which contributed to the procession extending into Saturday.
Joint inspections of the route from Balapur to Hussainsagar were carried out with festival committees and officials from various departments. Police used technology to monitor the procession, and officials operated from the TGICCC Multi-Agency War Room to resolve problems on the ground. Coordination among the police, GHMC, Revenue, Electricity, RTA, HMDA and other agencies was central to managing the event, the Commissioner said, with cranes positioned along Tank Bund, NTR Marg and Necklace Road and diversions in place across the procession stretches.
Over the two days, the Commissioner travelled by motorcycle along several stretches, including Tank Bund, Basheerbagh, Liberty, Ambedkar Statue, Telugu Talli Flyover, M.J. Market, Nampally, Gandhi Bhavan and Nizam College Junction, inspecting arrangements and meeting personnel on duty.
While calling the immersion peaceful, he flagged issues that police intend to address before next year's festival. Paper shower cannons left large quantities of paper on roads, creating a skidding hazard for two-wheelers when it rained, and police will raise the matter with the government and seek a ban on such devices from next year. Waste left after food distribution will also be regulated. He expressed concern over instances of drunk driving and what he described as obscene dancing by a few individuals.
Police plan to hold advance meetings with festival committees and idol makers ahead of the 2027 festivities to spread awareness about idol height restrictions, security standards and discipline. A detailed debriefing of this year's operation will be conducted, with lessons from the exercise feeding into preparations for the 2027 Ganesh festival, the Commissioner said.