GANESH IDOLS IMMERSED IN LIVERPOOL RIVER
By Prasun Sonwalkar, London, 28 September 2007 (IANS)

Amidst chants of "Ganpati bappa morya", hundreds of people of Indian origin residing in the Midlands and other parts of Britain gathered at Liverpool to immerse idols of Lord Ganesh in the Mersey river. Several coaches transported hundreds of followers from all over the country to Liverpool for the ceremony. So many people turned up in Liverpool that the ceremony had to be performed twice, with the ferry Snowdrop crowded with Lord Ganesh devotees.

Organisers of the immersion ceremony plan to make next year's Ganesh Chaturthi celebration in Liverpool a bigger event. Liverpool is the European Capital of Culture for the year 2008. The Liverpool ceremony this week was part of several such events organised across Britain. These include the London-based Maharashtra Mandal, one of the oldest Indian organisations in Britain that celebrated its 75th anniversary earlier this month.

According to Shiv Pande, secretary of the Indo-British Association in the North which organised the Liverpool event, the river Mersey is revered by the Hindu community in the north of England as equivalent in status to the River Ganges. The association was established in 1982 to promote better understanding between the peoples of Britain and India.

The Liverpool event began at the Town Hall with worshippers being greeted by the Lord Mayor, councillor Paul Clark. Also present were the Bishop of Liverpool, James Jones, Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside, Prof Philip Love, the Chief Constable Bernard Hogan-Howe and the Consul General of India, S.V. Balaji.

Mahendra Dabhi, president of the Shree Hindu Community Centre in Birmingham, hoped next year's ceremony in Liverpool will also be a grand affair. He said that the Hindu community in Midlands and the North of England had developed an affinity for Liverpool.

He told the Lord Mayor during the immersion ceremony: "We can make the Ganesh Visarjan (immersion ceremony) one of the most memorable events in Liverpool's culture year calendar. We could easily bring at least 5,000 Hindus to Liverpool."

Earlier this month, thousands of people of Indian origin gathered at the eastern England coastal town of Shoebury to celebrate Ganesh festival and immerse idols, which were carried in a procession as part of a float to the Shoeburyness seafront.

The event was organised by the Shree Jalaram Judpi Seva Trust Temple, in Hounslow, and was supported by Southend Council. Jyoti Patel, Southend representative for the temple, said: "People were bedecked in traditional Indian costume and dancing, singing and enjoying themselves throughout the day. "A prayer tent provided some space for anyone who wished to pray or join in with religious chanting. A procession of idols of Lord Ganesh was carried into the sea where they were immersed and bathed".

David Garston, executive councillor for culture, said: "It is an honour to be hosting this festival for a third consecutive year. Southend's Hindu community has pulled out all the stops to make sure it's as vibrant as any of the festivals held in India."