Mumbai

The immersion of Lalbaugcha Raja, one of the most iconic idols of Lord Ganesh during the Ganpati festival in Mumbai, was delayed on Sunday after an unexpected rise in the Arabian Sea waters due to a high tide, sources said.

Generally, the Lalbaugcha Raja idol is immersed in the deep sea at Girgaon Chowpatty in south Mumbai before 9 am after shifting it on a raft, but this year, for the first time, the process was delayed due to the unexpected circumstances, they said.

Despite the delay, thousands of devotees, who came to bid farewell to Lalbaugcha Raja, continued to wait at the chowpatty.

The immersion procession of the idol started on Saturday and it was brought to Girgaon Chowpatty early Sunday morning, coinciding with a strong high tide.

The swift water surge caused a platform carrying the idol to start floating, making it difficult to align it properly with the raft meant to carry the idol into the deeper sea for immersion.

For about three hours, the idol was in a few feet deep waters, with 15 to 20 volunteers and fishermen trying to maintain its balance.

After more than one-and-a-half hours of efforts by local fishermen and volunteers, the Lalbaugcha Raja Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal decided to wait for the water to recede after the high tide of 4.42 metres at around 11.40 am.

The immersion will now be carried out once the tide subsides to a safer level, the sources said.

The mandal would use a new big size raft for the immersion this year, they said.

The mandal office-bearers -- Sudhir Salavi and Balasaheb Kamble -- could not be contacted for information despite repeated attempts.

Since early morning, thousands of devotees gathered at the chowpatty to witness the final farewell of Lalbaugcha Raja.

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Civic and police authorities were present at the site and closely monitoring the situation.