Mandals go ahead sans permissions

With barely two days to go for the Ganpati festival, majority of the Ganpati mandals are yet to get requisite permissions. However, mandals that have been denied the necessary permissions, have vowed to celebrate the festival anyway.

According to civic data, 1,911 Ganpati mandals have applied for permission for erecting pandals, of which only 448 have been given permissions and 373 have not been given a nod. Further, 911 have still not got permission from the police and 187 haven’t got permissions from the ward office. However, almost all the mandals have erected their pandals without waiting for the necessary permissions. Even the idols have been installed.

Following the directives of the Bombay high court, the BMC this year has prepared a policy to grant permission for erection of temporary structures on roads for festivals and ceremonies. For getting the civic body’s permission, Ganpati mandals are required to get NOCs from the police as well as the traffic police department.

The Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti (BSGSS), an umbrella organisation of Ganesh mandals in the city, has blamed the traffic police for the delay in getting permissions.

“Most of the Ganpati mandals are still awaiting the traffic police’s nod. They can’t wait for this long for erecting pandals. Many mandals have been denied permission for small reasons like not having road maps. But mandals will still celebrate the way they have always done as nowhere has the court said that the festival should not be celebrated,” said Narendra Dahibavkar, president of BSGSS.

According to the BSGSS, there are 11,556 Sarvajanik Ganpati mandals in the city. Of them, only 1,911 mandals have applied for permissions. It has also raised questions about whether these mandals will celebrate the festival without necessary approvals.

“There are still a couple of days to go for the festival. We will take a decision as and when situation occurs,” said a senior civic official, on condition of anonymity.