Mumbai, Sep 11 (IANS) The Ganesh immersion ceremonies were a peaceful affair in Maharashtra Sunday, except for an accidental death and a couple of drowning incidents, officials said.


Sunday marked the culmination of the 10-day long Ganesh Chaturthi, celebrated with great zest across India as the birthday of Lord Ganesha.

The day saw thousands of devotees assembling on the streets and participating in the immersion ceremony. The processions all over Mumbai began with devotees chanting 'Ganpati Bappa Morya, Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya'. Youngsters were seen dancing to the beats of the traditional percussion instrument 'dhol'. The sprinkling of vermilion added colour to the festive occasion.

However, one person was killed and six others injured as a balcony collapsed in Bharatmata area of central Mumbai while the procession of the famous 'Lalbaugcha Raja' Ganesh was passing by.

"One man was brought dead while six others were brought injured, of them two girls being critical," an official from KEM Hospital told IANS.

The incident happened when the balcony gave away as it could not bear the weight of more than 50 devotees who were standing on it to get a glimpse of the Ganesh idol.

In another incident, several people were injured when a 12-feet idol collapsed during the immersion procession at Chinchpokli bridge in central Mumbai.

"The idol slipped as the lorry got a big jerk due to a huge pothole on the road. However, the volunteers supported the idol and it did not suffer any cracks. We have managed to immerse it without any problems," said Mangesh Patade of the Tejukaya mandal.

Two youths drowned in Sonegaon lake in Nagpur city. "The youths were part of a group that came for the immersion ceremony at the lake. They are believed to have strayed deep into the lake and were unable to swim their way back," a police officer said.

Big mandals that had large Ganesh idols in south Mumbai, including the famous Lalbaugcha Raja, proceed to the Girgaum Chowpaty for the immersion. While the procession for big mandals will culminate only Monday morning, the household idols were immersed peacefully at various spots.

Mumbai Police along with the traffic officers did their best to ensure an incident-free immersion ceremony. Security was also tightened in the wake of the Delhi High Court blast.

The police also used Global Positioning System (GSP) devices and cameras for surveillance.

"Vehicles of the most important Ganesh mandals in the city were fitted with with video cameras," a senior traffic police officer said.

Many roads on the immersion routes were closed for general traffic.