Pune: 706 Tons of Waste After Ganesh Immersion, 1.5 Tons of Slippers Found on Routes
Pune, 9th September 2025: The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has cleared nearly 706 tons of garbage generated during the Ganesh immersion processions across the city. Among the most unusual findings was around one and a half tons of discarded slippers and shoes collected from major procession routes.
In addition, large amounts of waste were created by paper blasts used by several dhol-tasha groups, which left shredded paper strewn across the roads. The massive clean-up drive began immediately after the immersion processions concluded late Sunday night.
According to officials, more than 3,000 civic workers were deployed for the task, with 1,500 dedicated to cleaning the central immersion routes — Lakshmi Road, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Road, Bajirao Road, Kelkar Road, Kumthekar Road, Tilak Road, and Shastri Road. These teams worked until 2 am, while the remaining staff continued cleaning other parts of the city and suburbs throughout Monday.
Despite the efforts, intermittent rainfall hampered garbage collection. Officials said that decorative materials, thermocol, and flowers were carelessly dumped on roadsides by some mandals, adding to the challenge.
Break-up of Waste Collected on Procession Routes:
Wet waste: 420 tons
Dry waste: 286 tons
Decorative materials: 30 tons
Slippers and shoes: 1 ton 607 kg
Civic officials said the intensive clean-up drive will continue until all routes and public spaces are cleared of leftover immersion waste.
