Elaborate arrangements in place: Bonthu Rammohan

Mayor Bonthu Rammohan said elaborate arrangements were being made for Ganesh idols immersion at 32 locations in the city on Thursday at a cost of nearly Rs 20 crore.

Along the procession routes covering 391 kms, there will be Ganesh Action Teams, each comprising sanitary supervisor, three field assistants and 21 workers, stationed every three kms. These teams will function round the clock in three shifts. Nearly Rs 9.20 crore worth 176 works, including road repairs and works at lakes were underway. 

Installation of 37,674 temporary street lights at all approach roads were being taken up with a cost of Rs 99.41 lakh, the Mayor said. As many as 254 cranes are being arranged and all dangling wires and tree branches were being pruned to avoid any inconvenience. Unlike previous years, cranes are being arranged by GHMC taking over the arrangements from Irrigation department.

The Roads and Building department is constructing barricades covering 12 kms on the procession



routes, besides installation of 75 power generators. Hyderabad Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board is arranging 115 water camps and will be distributing over 30 lakh water sachets.

As a precautionary measure, 36 fire tenders were being deployed along the procession routes and National Disaster Response Force teams will be stationed at Tank Bund and Saroornagar lake.

Tourism Department is arranging seven boats and four high speed boats at Hussain Sagar lake and ten professional swimmers will be deployed. Similarly, there will be three boats at Saroornagar, Kapra and Pragathi Nagar lakes.

For the first time, the Hussain Sagar lake bed at NTR Garden gate-end has been deepened by 22 feet to ensure submergence of towering Khairatabad Ganesh.

The HMDA has taken up the exercise 20 days back and nearly 200 tonnes of hard soil was excavated from the lake bed at platform no.6, said an official.