Seven killed in accidents during Ganesh immersion across Andhra

At least seven people were killed and three injured in separate accidents during Ganesh festivities in Andhra Pradesh on Sunday, police said.

While four people were killed in Prakasam district, two died in Nellore districts and one in Kurnool. The accidents occurred during idol immersion processions.

Meanwhile, four youth were killed and one injured in a collision between two motorbikes in Prakasam's Etamukkala beach area.

According to police, the youth were riding the bikes at high speed and they collided head-on. While two died on the spot, two others succumbed at a hospital.

Two youth were electrocuted during a Ganesh procession in Nellore. The youth came in contact with a live wire and died on the spot. Two others were injured.

Another person died when a Ganesh idol fell on him during immersion near Kalvabugga in Kurnool.

Meanwhile, it was reported that the Municipal Corporation of Tirupati (MCT) chopped off many trees on the arterial roads leading to the Vinayaka Sagar in the city, to accommodate the massive Ganesh idols.

 “Many mandapam organisers (the local committees that installed Vinayaka idols in colonies) made a request to us to clear the branches protruding on the road for the easy transportation of the huge idols, which we forwarded to the civic body,” P Naveen Kumar Reddy, a member of the Tirupati Vinayaka Festival Committee told The Hindu. 

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted the nation on Ganesh Chaturthi.

"Greetings on the auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi," Modi tweeted.

Also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi, Ganesh Chaturthi is a 10-day Hindu festival that reveres Lord Ganesha.

IANS inputs