BENGALURU
With the upcoming Ganesha festival approaching, the Bengaluru North City Corporation has ramped up preparations to ensure safe and environment-friendly celebrations across its jurisdiction. Corporation Commissioner Pommala Sunil Kumar chaired a high-level review meeting to outline standard operating procedures, emphasizing strict adherence to ecological guidelines, simplified administrative clearances, and comprehensive public safety protocols for the 2026 festive season.
To eliminate bureaucratic hurdles for neighborhood committees and organizers, the civic body has rolled out a streamlined Single Window System for public idol installations. Citizens can now submit permissions directly at their local police stations. A joint coordination team consisting of officials from the municipal corporation, local police, BESCOM, and the Fire Department will evaluate applications simultaneously, ensuring expeditious approvals.
Environmental protection remains a central focus of this year’s guidelines. Authorities have enforced a strict, complete ban on the manufacture, sale, and use of Plaster of Paris (PoP), thermocol, and toxic chemical colors. Dedicated nodal teams comprising multi-departmental officers will conduct surprise raids on manufacturing units and retail outlets. Violators face heavy fines, immediate seizure of prohibited goods, and potential criminal prosecution. Zonal health officers will oversee these enforcement sweeps.
Concurrently, the corporation is promoting sustainable alternatives, strongly encouraging citizens to use traditional clay idols and adopt eco-friendly practices such as home immersion in buckets, allowing families to reuse the sacred soil in home gardens. For large community idols, the corporation is setting up designated temporary immersion tanks, kalyanis, and mobile facilities across Assembly constituencies. These sites will feature floodlighting, barricades, medical booths with ambulances, and trained expert swimmers, with National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams on standby for emergency deployment.
To combat post-festival litter, the civic administration has planned meticulous waste management operations at all immersion points. Sanitation crews will systematically segregate organic waste like puja flowers from non-biodegradable materials, routing wet waste to municipal processing units and dry waste to designated collection centers under the direct supervision of the corporation’s Deputy General Manager. Furthermore, special zonal squads will crack down on single-use plastics throughout the festive week.
Municipal authorities have appealed to all residents to cooperate with the guidelines, shun polluting materials, and embrace a sustainable, safe festival season.