According to the Lalbaugcha Raja Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal, the delay was caused by a combination of high tide conditions and a technical snag during the immersion process.
Sudhir Salavi, honorary secretary of the Mandal, explained that although the 18-foot idol began its final journey from Lalbaug at 12 PM on Saturday and reached Girgaon Chowpatty by 8 AM on Sunday, high tide had already set in by then, making the immersion unsafe.
As per the India Meteorological Department (IMD), a 4.42-metre high tide was expected around 11:40 AM on Sunday. Civic officials noted that high tide conditions generally begin about six hours before the peak, meaning rough sea conditions had already begun by the time the idol arrived.
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“We needed to shift the idol from the trolley to the raft for immersion, but waist-deep water made this extremely difficult, despite support from volunteers of various mandals,” said one of the volunteers.
This year, the Mandal switched from their usual mechanised raft to an electrically operated one, which added further delays. The idol was eventually loaded onto the raft around 4:45 PM, but the challenging sea conditions meant the final immersion didn’t occur until nearly four hours later.
Finally, Around 9 PM, The Majestic Idol of Lalbaugcha Raja was immersed in the Arabian Sea, Amd Heartfelt Chants of ‘Pudhya Varshi Lavkar Ya’ (“Come Early Next Year”).
