BMC To Impose Rs 2,000 Fine Per Pothole Dug For Ganeshotsav Mandaps
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has announced a Rs 2,000 fine for every pothole dug on roads or footpaths to construct Ganeshotsav mandaps across Mumbai. The civic body introduced the penalty to protect newly concretised roads in the city and urged organisers to adopt pit-free construction techniques instead.
Mumbai hosts an estimated 10,000 to 11,000 public Ganeshotsav mandals, with approximately 2,000 to 3,000 setting up temporary mandaps on roads or footpaths. This year, the BMC has also made it mandatory for all Ganesh mandals to specify the size and height of their idols in their registration forms.
The civic measures follow the Mahayuti government's declaration of Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav as a state festival, aiming to develop the celebration into a global cultural event. In response, the Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti, a consortium of Mumbai mandals, submitted a comprehensive joint action plan to the state government.
In a letter addressed to Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar, BSGSS president Naresh Dahibavkar proposed establishing a state Ganeshotsav coordination cell. Dahibavkar noted that the cell would bring together the cultural affairs and home departments, the BMC, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, the tourism department, traffic police, disaster management authorities, and mandal representatives.
The Samiti has also proposed a Mumbai Ganesh Cultural Circuit covering prominent festival hubs such as Lalbaug, Girgaon, Shivaji Park, and Parel. The circuit aims to showcase the festival to visitors through cultural guides, multilingual information boards, QR-based historical data, and special tours for foreign tourists.
Additional proposals include the Green Ganesh Jan Andolan, which recommends hybrid eco-idol pilots, heavy-metal-free colour certification, and a recycling tracking system under a Mumbai Immersion Management Model. The committee also suggested forming a trained Ganesh Volunteer Corps for crowd control and safety, alongside a Digital Ganeshotsav Mumbai mobile application for registrations, live crowd advisories, and emergency alerts.
