Nagpur: The final journey of a Ganpati idol is usually associated with chants of Ganpati Bappa Morya, drums and dancing devotees. But for the towering idols, there is another, quieter operation unfolding behind the scenes — one involving heavy machinery, precision and dozens of workers.At Nagpur Municipal Corporation’s (NMC) permanent artificial immersion tank at Gorewada, the solid waste management and workshop departments have mounted an elaborate operation to ensure that the taller idols make it safely from the road to the water.The challenge begins when a large idol arrives at the immersion point. Too tall and heavy to be handled manually, it has to be carefully lifted using heavy machinery, transported over a controlled route and lowered into the tank. A small error during any of these stages could damage the idol or put workers and devotees at risk.For the civic staff, therefore, immersion of a giant idol is less a single event and more a carefully coordinated operation.“Machinery operators work alongside ground personnel who guide the movement of the idol, keep people at a safe distance and ensure that the structure remains stable while it is being shifted. The process requires patience as much as equipment,” deputy municipal commissioner Rajesh Bhagat told TOI while monitoring immersions of taller idols at permanent big concrete tanks.“Similar arrangements have been made at the artificial immersion tank near the Koradi lake, Kacchivisa ground and another permanent tank adjoining Police Line lake. Heavy machinery and additional manpower have been deployed at these locations to handle taller idols,” said chief sanitation officer (SWM) Dr Gajendra Mahalle. A total of 21 heavy machines, comprising four excavators, nine tippers, and eight cranes, were pressed into service. More than 1,000 civic staffers, including trained sanitation workers skilled in securing large idols to heavy vehicles for immersion, were deployed. Experienced drivers operated the machinery, ensuring the safe and smooth immersion of tall idols throughout the festival.The exercise also reflects a larger change in the way Nagpur is handling idol immersion. Instead of relying entirely on natural lakes and water bodies, the civic body has created designated artificial and permanent facilities where idols can be immersed under controlled conditions.For devotees, the operation may appear to last only a few minutes — the idol is lifted, moved and finally lowered into the water. For the NMC teams, however, those few minutes are the culmination of planning, equipment deployment and coordination.GANESH IMMERSION — KEY FIGURESTotal idols immersed: 1,54,506
