Pune: More people opted for eco-friendly and alternative arrangements for Ganesh idol immersion this year, with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) recording 6,77,057 idols immersed or collected for immersion during Ganeshotsav 2026—up from 6,54,410 last year, an increase of nearly 3.5%, officials said on Saturday.
Of the total idol immersions recorded this year, 1,09,479 idols were immersed in built tanks, 3,94,349 in iron tanks, while 1,73,229 idols were collected for immersion. The number of idols immersed in iron tanks increased from 3,62,319 in 2025 to 3,94,349 this year, while those immersed in built tanks fell from 1,13,136 to 1,09,479. However, this year, the number of idols collected declined from 1,78,955 to 1,73,229. The PMC had also set up 45 centres to collect shadu clay and shadu clay idols besides 358 nirmalya collection urns and containers at 267 locations. The civic body this year deployed 1,670 vehicles for festival-related arrangements and involved 4,179 permanent sanitation workers, along with health inspectors and other staff. Also, this year, nirmalya collection increased to 9,83,044 kg compared to 9,23,398 kg of nirmalya collected during the corresponding Ganeshotsav 2025, said officials.
Across its 15 regional offices, the PMC provided facilities at 38 immersion ghats with 58 built tanks, 812 iron tanks at 305 locations and 224 idol collection centres. The response received this year was comparatively better.
Santosh Warule, head of the PMC solid waste management department, said, “The PMC had appealed to citizens to avoid immersing idols in rivers and lakes and use the facilities provided by the civic body to prevent pollution of natural water sources. The rise was recorded as the civic body expanded facilities to keep idols out of rivers and other natural water bodies, according to officials.
