Mangaluru: The 79th annual public Ganeshotsava at Sanghaniketan in Pratap Nagar commenced with the grand procession of the clay idol of Lord Ganesha to the venue.
The five-day Ganeshotsava is being organised under the aegis of the Keshav Smruti Samvardhan Trust and will feature a series of religious and cultural programmes.
The idol was crafted at the residence of late Mohan Rao and brought to Sanghaniketan in a traditional procession. Volunteers from the Sri Venkataramana Temple at Car Street (Ratha Beedi) carried the clay idol on their shoulders, creating a devotional spectacle as the procession made its way to Sanghaniketan.
The celebrations will include special pujas, religious rituals and cultural programmes during the five-day festival. Organisers said the programmes have been planned to mark the annual Ganeshotsava with the participation of devotees and the local community.
RSS Mangaluru Mahanagar Sanghachalak Dr Satish Rao and Vibhag Pracharak Suresh Ji were present and offered guidance during the proceedings.
Keshav Smruti Samvardhan Trust vice-president K Raghuveer Kamath, secretary Gajanana Pai and Seva Bharati Pramukh Vinod Shenai were among those present.
Public Sri Ganeshotsav Committee vice-presidents Anand Pangala, K Padmanabha and Smita M, along with office-bearers G Suresh Kamath, Ranganath, Nandan Mallya, Jeevanraj Shenai, Ganesh Prasad and Purnima Shenai, also attended the programme.
The organisers have invited devotees to participate in large numbers and make the five-day Ganeshotsava a grand success.
