Pune: Tilak Road Ganesh Visarjan Route to Be Streamlined with Volunteers’ Support; Assures Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar
Pune, 29th July 2025: In a proactive effort to address the perennial issue of delays during the Tilak Road Ganesh Visarjan procession, the Tilak Road Visarjan Procession Planning Committee convened a special meeting with Pune Police Commissioner Amitesh Kumar, becoming the first to initiate such a collaborative session.
During the meeting, Ganesh mandal volunteers highlighted various logistical challenges faced during the immersion procession. Responding positively, Commissioner Kumar assured swift action to mitigate these issues and work toward completing the immersion procession earlier than usual, with the active cooperation of mandals and citizens.
Key Demands and Recommendations Made by the Committee:
Deployment of senior police officers at Abhinav Chowk (Puram Chowk) to ease bottlenecks and facilitate faster procession movement.
Priority-based, structured movement of Ganesh mandals entering Tilak Road from Satara Road, Shivaji Road, and Baji Rao Road.
Removal or adjustment of low-placed CCTV poles and obstructive dividers near the Silai Shop at Abhinav Chowk, which hinder the passage of large visarjan chariots.
Establishment of a dedicated immersion tank for Tilak Road mandals to reduce walking distance to Alka Talkies, with alternate options like Vitthal Mandir or Bharati Bhavan suggested.
Permanent iron barricades on both sides of Tilak Road (from Swargate-Jedhe Chowk to Alka Talkies), modeled on Laxmi Road, to streamline pedestrian movement.
Proper alignment of the welcome arch at Alka Talkies, which currently faces the wrong direction, confusing.
Strict regulation of vehicle parking post-procession, especially on Lal Bahadur Shastri Road, Dandekar Bridge, and Sarasbaug route, to prevent congestion and allow processions to exit smoothly.
Enhanced safety for attendees, with a particular emphasis on women’s security.
Provision of mobile toilets along the procession route, especially for women participants and onlookers.
Creation of organized food zones using open or PMC-owned spaces to keep footpaths clear and control crowd movement.
Strict action against illegal alcohol sales, which continue despite bans on immersion day.
Adequate lighting at key junctions—Swargate, Jedhe Chowk, Hirabaug, Abhinav Chowk, S.P. College, New English School, and Alka Talkies—for safety and visibility.
Withdrawal of pending legal cases against mandals, emphasizing that Ganeshotsav is a festival symbolizing Maharashtra’s social and cultural unity.
Alongside Commissioner Amitesh Kumar, the meeting was attended by Joint Commissioner Ranjankumar Sharma, Additional Commissioners Manoj Patil and Rajesh Bansode, DCPs Rishikesh Raval (Zone 1), Milind Mohite (Zone 2), Sambhaji Kadam (Zone 3), and Traffic DCP Himmat Jadhav.
Representatives from various Ganesh mandals, including Shyam Mankar (Hatti Ganpati), Suryakant Pathak (Grahak Peth), Shirish Mohite (Seva Mitra Mandal), Dheeraj Ghate (Sane Guruji Tarun Mandal), and Dr. Milind Bhoir (Vighnaharta Nyas), were also in attendance.
The meeting was organized by Tilak Road Visarjan Planning Committee members Amit Bagul, Pushkar Tuljapurkar, Ganesh Ghosh, Umesh Vaidya, Sudhir Dhamale, Sagar Bagul, Rishikesh Bhujbal, Vinayak Dharane, and Manisha Dharane.
