More than 800 Ganesh idols immersed at sea in Chennai, 15000 personnel on security duty

About 860 idols were immersed in the Bay of Bengal at different locations in Chennai on Sunday, marking the end of Vinayaka Chathurthi. There were about 15000 policemen on security duty as the festival was peacefully celebrated in the city.

A press release from Chennai police stated that 868 idols were immersed in the Bay of Bengal with the help of 5000 police personnel. Safety measures were also taken by police and fire safety department at Kasimedu, Foreshore Estate, Thiruvanmiyur and Neelankarai. Hundreds of trucks queued up for a crane which picked up the idols and immerse it in water, reported The New Indian Express.

A fire safety officer said that all the beaches were equipped with fire safety vehicles. Police made the road towards Kasimedu fishing port one way and the vehicles coming from opposite side was diverted on a lane that joins the Tiruvottriyur High road.

Chennai police were placed at large numbers at Srinivasapuram in Pattinampakkam to ensure that there were no problems while idols were being immersed at Neelankarai, Pattinampakkkam, Tiruvottriyur, Royapuram Fishing Harbour and Ramakrishna Nagar in Ennore, reported The Times of India.

They also accompanied vehicles from sensitive areas and temporary barricades were put up in few places to regulate the traffic. Police also took the help of fishing community to help in immersion of idols so that there were no drowning cases.

The Madras High Court on Wednesday had banned immersion of idols made out of Plaster of Paris (POP) and use of loud fireworks between 10pm to 6am. It had also asked the Tamil Nadu government to enforce the set guidelines in the future. The court also had stated that no idols can be installed without the permission from the police commissioner and that the organisers need to adhere to the conditions mentioned by the officer.