Ganesh mandals play key role in Maharashtra politics, grooming future leaders and actors

During British rule, social reformer Lokmanya Tilak started the public celebration of the Ganesh festival to bring people together and foster a sense of unity, but over the years, apart from serving these objectives, Ganesh mandals have also served as training grounds for budding politicians.

Through the “sarvajanik” (public) Ganesh mandals, future leaders can master different key skills like managing finances, managing human resources and establishing coordination between various agencies, says Naresh Dahibavkar, president, Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti (BSGSS).

Ganesh festival is celebrated across Maharashtra on a grand scale. This year, this 10-day cultural extravaganza will begin on September 7.

There are several political leaders in Maharashtra who earlier worked as humble ‘karyakartas’ (volunteers) in Ganesh mandals before venturing into the world of politics.

Speaking to PTI, Dahibavkar said NCP leader and Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal and Union minister Murlidhar Mohol are among some of the leaders who were earlier associated with Ganesh mandals in Mumbai and Pune respectively before making it big in politics.

Bhujbal, who was president of Anjirwadi Sarvajanik Mandal in Byculla in central Mumbai, rose to become a councillor, mayor of the city and then a cabinet minister. Mohol, a councillor and former mayor of Pune, won this year’s Lok Sabha elections as a BJP candidate and was later appointed Union Minister of State for Cooperation and Civil Aviation, he said.

Dahibavkar said he had written to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde two months ago seeking to ensure that the election code of conduct was not brought into force during the Ganesh festival and the demand was accepted, he added.

Maharashtra Assembly elections are likely to be held in mid-November.

“If a volunteer or official of the mandal becomes a politician and makes a donation to the organisation, the latter is obliged to put up its posters, regardless of whether it is an election year or not,” he said.

“During the holidays, donations are used because expenses have also increased. Today, we have to install video surveillance cameras,” he added.

According to Dahibavkar, apart from grooming politicians, Ganesh sarvajanik mandals also served as platforms for budding actors to showcase their talent through cultural activities.

“But as there are no musical programmes or plays during the festival as 10 pm is the last minute for loudspeakers to go on air, the training of new actors has also been stopped. Several theatre and film personalities have considered the plays organised by local Ganesh mandals as their debut in the field of art,” he said.

There are 3,300 public Ganesh mandals and 8,700 housing societies in the suburbs that are registered with the BSGSS, he said.

Ganesh mandals must obtain licences from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), licences are required from the police, traffic department and fire brigade and the committee must coordinate with the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and Metro Rail authorities to set up pandals, he said.

The civic body has issued guidelines on the height of pandals and stage, he said.

“Online permits are now valid for five years instead of one. But the traffic and police departments check every year whether the height regulations are being complied with,” he explained.

Each mandal has ‘Gan Sevaks’ who coordinate with the local police on security matters. Women also participate in large numbers as volunteers.

At each Ganesh mandala, various competitions are held for local residents, including cooking competitions for women and educational contests for children.

“The festival may last only for 10 days, but Ganesh mandals are active throughout the year and carry out various social initiatives. During the pandemic, 730 COVID-19 patients were saved due to the efforts of the coordination committee,” he said.

Dahibavkar said the city had never witnessed caste or religious tensions during festivals.

“We consider this to be our achievement. In some places, like Dongri, Muslims are leading the Ganesh mandalas,” he said.

Talking about the commercial aspect, he said that the turnover during Ganesh festival is worth a few crores as there is demand for various items like bamboo, tarpaulins, decoration material, flowers, fruits, dry fruits, instruments and sweets besides Ganesh idols.

“The government gets revenue in the form of Goods and Services Tax (GST),” he said.