Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in Maharashtra with a lot of dance, music, fun and love. The festival brings families together to celebrate the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha. As during this time, many people travel to and fro from Mumbai to Konkan to celebrate the Ganesh Chaturthi festivities in their native places. Keeping in mind the festival of Lord Ganesha, the Maharashtra Government has taken measures for the citizens to have a safe and free trip and hence has suspended the toll collection for light motor vehicles travelling from Mumbai to Kolhapur.
As the monsoon season has nearly come to an end and the arrival of Lord Ganesha has created lots of positivity in the environment. The city will be celebrating the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha from September 2 to September 12. On August 26th Cabinet Minister For Revenue and PWD, Chandrakant Patil announced that the state will be waiving the toll on light motor vehicles on the Mumbai-Kolhapur Highway. This waiving of the toll will be effective from August 30 to September 12 for better convenience of people as they use this stretch to reach to their native places. This year, with the Maharashtra floods in the region, the people have faced many difficulties already and this initiative by the government is a bright light. The government has also implemented measures in order to make roads safe to drive by filling up the potholes on the Konkan route as around 10,000 buses and 40,000 passengers travel by this route. The Railway will also run special trains during the festive season. According to report in Latestly.com, the Maharashtra government will also station special buses between all the most popular routes around and in Maharashtra between Mumbai-Pune and the parts of Konkan region to board people travelling for the festival.
Ganesh Chaturthi is marked as an auspicious occasion as it celebrates the birth anniversary of Lord Ganesha and was started in Pune by Lokmanya Tilak. The festival is celebrated by Devotees of the Lord to celebrate the occasion by bringing the Lord home. Finally, on the 10th day, the idol of Ganesha is immersed in water, particularly the nearest beach or lake. The festival throughout sees many devotees at Pandals who come to worship the Lord and seek blessings and the chaos created around Maharashtra is unmissable. The festival is a treat for foodies with a sweet-tooth for the special sweet dish, Modak which is prepared as an offering to Lord Ganesha.
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