Ganesha is a big thing in Western India and now in North India too. Many people brought Ganapati to their homes in Delhi as my family did. The immersions in Mumbai went on till 5 am today morning. It was a whole night affair with millions giving send off to Ganeshas. I can't include the images since the Mumbai newspapers are on a holiday today, there will be videos on Youtube.. This was the scene in Delhi:
[SIZE]Ganapati idol immersion causes traffic snarls on arterial roads in city Hindustan Times
NEW DELHI: Traffic on arterial roads of the Capital crawled as devotees made their way to the Yamuna banks for the immersion of Lord Ganesha’s idols on Monday. Devotees celebrate on the occasion of Ganesh Visarjan on Monday. Key routes such as ITO, Vikas Marg, Ring Road and NH-24 were jammed for hours from morning with snarls being reported from as far as the Najafgarh main road.
North, central and east Delhi, which are adjacent to the Yamuna, were the worst affected and saw highest deployment of traffic police personnel.
“Processions came from Majnu Ka Tila, Copernicus Marg, Karol Bagh and many other areas and, since afternoon, almost 30-40 processions — headed towards the Yamuna for immersion of idols — entered the Chandni Chowk area, wreaking havoc on traffic situation in the Capital,” said Sanjay Bhargava, secretary, Chandni Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal. (
that is a cry baby, he should know that next year there will be more processions)
“
These processions are not traditional and are new and
are being allowed contrary to the guidelines notified by the Delhi Police,” Bhargava added. (
Now, what could Delhi Police do? Disallow Ganesha Visarjan? Fool) According to many office goers, the ITO area was worstaffected. “The entire stretch was packed and the traffic police were doing nothing,” complained Yatin Sharma, 26, who works at a private firm in Connaught Place.
“The vehicles in the processions were zigzagging all over instead of sticking to a particular lane. The police were merely looking on,” Sharma added.
Geetu Sarin, a government employee, had a similar grouse. “What made matters worse were scores of bikers, who were visibly drunk, zooming along where ever they could find space. The traffic police just stood on the side and did nothing,” Sarin complained. (
Get used to them people) On their part, the police said they had made a note of the registration numbers of offenders and would prosecute them on the basis of photographic evidence.
Idol immersion brings traffic to a standstill (Times of India)
Traffic Snarls Forced Many Commuters To Walk Almost 5Km To Reach Their Destinations. Traffic in the city was held to ransom on Monday evening after thousands of devotees turned up to immerse Ganesha idols in the Yamuna. Despite having information that more than a thousand Ganpati idols will be immersed, the government and traffic police were caught offguard. Massive traffic snarls were reported from the Yamuna bridges and Ring Road. The situation was such that traffic came to a standstill for more than five hours at important intersections in central and east Delhi, forcing commuters to walk for nearly five kilometers at a stretch to reach their destinations. The Metro, too, was crowded. Choc-a-bloc traffic was reported at Sikandra road to Nizammuddin, ISBT to Hanuman Setu, Laxmi Nagar to ITO, Kalindi Kunj to Shaheen Bagh, Kashmere Gate to Ambedkar Stadium, Ashram Chowk and Vikas Marg.
“We diverted traffic going to Noida through DND flyway and Sarai Kale Khan-Ashram route where traffic was moving unlike other parts of the Ring Road,” said a senior traffic official. Though additional personnel had been deployed to streamline trucks carrying idols along a designated corridor to avoid a standstill, devotees blocked an entire carriageway on Vikas Marg, Ring Road and Geeta Colony road to reach the immersion ghats. “I have been waiting near Laxmi Nagar Metro station for the past three hours and have moved just 10 metres,” said Aditya Raj, a businessman heading to Shakarpur. “I left home at 3.30pm to reach office. However, I was caught in a jam at Vikas Marg for five hours and decided to go back home. All the people were dancing on the road and no one was managing the crowds,” said, Sreejata Chatterjee, a resident of Mayur Vihar.
Later at night, traffic cops tried to divert vehicles through NH-24 to reach Ring Road, but that too failed to clear the logjams. “There was no traffic cop on the bridge to even guide vehicles to the diverted routes. Trucks full of devotees were parked along the bridge while vehicles crawling in a single lane made things worse,” said Sachin Sethi, an engineer. Traffic police estimates show that more than 1,500 trucks carrying Ganapati idols along with devotees had gathered at Nigambodh Ghat, Kudasia Ghat, Geeta Colony Ghat and Chhath Visarjan Ghat. Traffic officials said that though the processions were over by 9pm, snarls continued for more than three hours after that. Cops also launched a drive against stunt biking and drunken driving, but little could be done to stop revelers on foot. “Most of the people walking in the procession seemed drunk and few of them were even seen misbehaving with women,” said Siddharth Garg, a software engineer based in north Delhi.
Videos
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLXvuySXk3Y
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyCz3I5Omwc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UZdQVBpcIE
