The immersion of Ganesh idols was underway in the Hussain Sagar lake and other water bodies in the city marking the conclusion of the 11-day ‘Vinayaka Chaviti’ festival. Reuters photo
On the occasion of Vinayaka Chaviti, a pandal in Balapur on the outskirts of Hyderabad organised an open ‘laddu’ auction and fetched Rs 15.60 lakh. The tradition began in the 1990s and now the ritual of auctioning laddu takes place every year on the last day of the festival before the idol of Lord Ganesha is taken for immersion.
Tirupati Reddy got the laddu for Rs 15.60 lakh in the auction. However, the first ever laddu was reportedly bought for Rs 450 in 1994. The participants in the auction believe that the laddu prasad would bring them good luck and prosperity. Over the years, several businessmen have been bidding for the famous laddu.
The immersion of Ganesha idols was underway in the Hussain Sagar lake and other water bodies in the city marking the conclusion of the 11-day ‘Vinayaka Chaviti’ festival. To ease traffic on roads, the authorities had decided to conclude the immersion of the famous 57-feet-tall Khairatabad Ganesha idol in the Hussain Sagar lake by the afternoon. The police along with the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation have made arrangements for the smooth conduct of the immersion rituals. According to reports, nearly 6,000 idols have been already immersed till Monday. As many as 10,000 sanitation personnel and 75 swimmers were also deployed for the immersion event, B Rammohan, the mayor said. Security was beefed up and over 24,000 police personnel have been deployed. Police officials told that special cameras have also been installed to keep an eye on the entire event.
With PTI inputs
