Special aarti for cops at Ganesh Galli

With the advent of Ganesh Chaturthi, cops across the city are on their toes to ensure the 10-day festival goes off without any security hitches. And this time around, organisers of the Ganesh Galli mandal have decided to thank police authorities by organising a maha aarti for all personnel on September 10.

Secretary of the mandal Swapnil Parab, said, "Our motive behind organising a maha aarti is to let the authorities enjoy the festivities for at least half an hour forgetting all the work pressures that bog them down especially this time around. They do not get the time to enjoy such festivals as they are protecting citizens and worried about security arrangements. After working 12-hour shifts ensuring that we can enjoy, they find it difficult to come out with their families to enjoy and hence, on September 10, as a token of our appreciation, we have organised a maha arti for cops."

Another member of the mandal added that invitations for the aarti have been sent out to the police department but they weren't sure how many officers would attend the aarti. "Several officers are of the opinion that taking off duty for half an hour is not advisable and might cause problems. Hence, we are unsure how many officers would attend but we shall conduct the arti nonetheless," said the member.

Scribes too
And it's not just cops who get a special time with the Lord but a mandal organiser further added that they were organising a special maha aarti for journalists too. Parab said, "Press invites have been sent to various press offices as the media never rests and journalists work tirelessly every day without any holidays. So we have decided that we shall thank them to and have organised a maha aarti for journalists on September 9 at 8.30 pm."

Old is gold
The Ganesh Galli mandal is one of the oldest mandals in the city entering its 84th year of celebrations. The mandal is popular for its giant idols and unique decorations. This year Vijay Khatu, renowned idol maker has made a replica of the 1977 idol made by Dinanath Veling.

Number game

Rs 49 lakh First day collections at the Lalbaugcha Raja mandal in Parel. Officials said that the amount surpassed last year's collection of Rs 5 lakh

7 Number of donation boxes placed at the Lalbaugcha Raja Mandal

15 lakh Number of people who visited the mandal

Rs 38 l Total amount of donations made last year