Ganesh visarjan processions begin in Mumbai as devotees bid farewell to their favourite deity

Mumbai: Amid the beating of drums and chants of 'Ganpati Bappa Morya', various Ganesh mandals in Mumbai on Thursday started processions to immerse the idols of the deity, marking the culmination of the 10-day festival.

Crowds gathered at various places in the city to catch a glimpse of their favourite deity, as decked up idols of Lord Ganesh in various forms and sizes were taken out of pandals for their final journey, accompanied by music, dance and prayers.

The festival, which began with 'Ganesh Chaturthi' on September 19, is set to conclude on the 'Anant Chaturdashi' on Thursday with the immersion of idols in the Arabian Sea and other water bodies here.

In Mumbai's Lalbaug area, famous for celebrating the festival with grandeur, the procession of idols of Tejukaya and Ganesh Gully mandals started with chants of 'Ganapati Bappa Morya, Pudhchya Varshi Lavkar Ya' (come soon next year Lord).

The procession of the famous Lalbaugcha Raja idol, that attracts maximum number of devotees during the 10-day festival, started at around 11.30 am.

A large number of people were seen waiting on both sides of roads for the final 'darshan' of the idol.

Thousands of people gathered on the streets of Lalbaug and other major procession routes of Ganesh idols to bid farewell to the deity with heartfelt prayers and witness the vibrant processions being taken out with music, dance and sprinkling of 'gulal' (vermillion powder).

There was also a large gathering of people at Lalbaug's Shroff building to witness 'pushpavrusti' (showering of flowers) on the Ganesh idols.

Crowds also assembled on the main road leading to Girgaon in south Mumbai, from where the maximum number of processions pass. These include the processions of Ganesh idols from Fort, Girgaon, Mazgaon, Byculla, Dadar, Matunga, Sion, Chembur and other areas.

According to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, as many as 1,65,964 idols, including several household idols, 'sarvajanik' (public) ones and idols of Goddess Gauri, were immersed in various water bodies here including artificial ponds till the seventh day of the festival.