The rage and passion of Indians is more explicit when it comes to festivities. The famous Ganesh Chaturthi or internationally known elephant-head God festival, celebrated with much fanfare, especially in Maharashtra, expounds the depth of dedication that people can engage in during the 11-day celebration. Equally dedicated are the service providers who are engaged in cleaning the festival areas. Mumbai-based Sanjay Maintenance Services shares the challenges of keeping clean the famous Lalbaugcha Raja location in Mumbai where 1.5 million people visit every day.
[box type=”shadow” ]“When we do not have space even to hold a tall brush straight, where is the chance for mechanised cleaning?”[/box]
The devotees enter this area from three main gates. During the festive time, the fish market is shut down and barricades are put up to guide the crowd. “The extent of littering is so high that constant cleaning is required right from the entry point up to the foot of the idol,” said Prashant Ghodke, Senior Manager, Sanjay Maintenance Services Pvt. Ltd, who has been supervising the cleaning at Lalbaug for the last 11 years.
The cleaning work at Lalbaug begins much prior to the festival. “We have a manager, four supervisors and 40 workers with four lady staff working round the clock at the site. The team is elated and so happy in cleaning and maintaining the place that they lose count of the days and hours spent in doing seva (service),” adds Prashant.
The work gets started four days prior to the coconut breaking ceremony performed before installing the Ganpati idol. The work is divided into two 12-hour shifts and the team takes charge at Garam Khada, Mandap & stage area, BMC Fish Market, Hanuman Temple Lane, Chiwda Galli, three main gates and periphery. All the reception and help desks, medical assistance rooms and toilets are managed by SMS.
During the festival, each of the team members take the designated area and are trained to handle their job efficiently. “Cleaning at Lalbaug is a different quotient all together. Even though as professionals we practice mechanized cleaning, when it comes to Lalbaug, we have no choice but to go manual. Leave alone brooms, it is a challenge to even use simple tools for cleaning. It is perfect coordination, strict adherence to processes, vigilant cleaning, alertness and above all dedication which has enabled the team to successfully maintain a litter-free surrounding,” explained Sanjay Khanvilkar, Managing Director.
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Offerings
“The stage, where the idol is seated, needs constant cleaning and the space that we get is not even enough to stand Mr. Tall Brush! Devotees enter the deity area in two rows and get to do darshan from a distance of six feet. There is a continuous flow of air-borne offerings aimed at the stage from all sides. Some of these fall short and land on the floor before the stage. Being a high traffic area, we have to constantly either pick or remove what falls on the floor. Flowers, garlands, incense stick packets, gold & silver offerings, currency notes and coins, and the risky one is the coconut which is thrown randomly. The team standing on the stage have to be alert not to get hurt and keep themselves safe. All these offerings on the stage are filled in garbage bags and the team which is strategically positioned, pass it on from one to another to the collection area. In the presence of the Trust member, the offerings are separated – the disposables are removed and the valuables handed over to the authorities. Here again, SMS team has been trained to refrain from any kind of temptation to steal and to cautiously handover the valuables,” said Prashant.
Footwear
“During the festival days, it is not possible for the municipal workers to come inside the market. Waste from the market, nearby housing societies and soiled disposables from different events organized rotationally by numerous private mandals in the vicinity are disposed by our team. A periodic cleaning and waste collection from Medical assistance rooms is done carefully. Our team are trained and well equipped with PPE like gloves and face mask to offer service in this area.
Assistance
“SMS engages in guiding and helping devotees which also include children, aged people and those requiring assistance through the helpdesks or assistance rooms. These areas are well equipped with enough drinking water and first aid. This is important as the team cannot leave their designated positions. Even to walk across the crowd to fetch a glass of water will take hours.”
Rains Issues
This festival falls during the seasonal rains making cleaning all the more challenging. “Hence, to ensure that people do not step over litter and turn the place messier, we avoid any kind of accumulation of waste. Potholes in heavy rains are filled with soil immediately to prevent anybody from falling. We try and keep all the areas including the washrooms slip-free.”
Coordination
The SMS team is equipped with walkie-talkies for better communication for immediate service delivery and co-ordination with activist/ volunteers/ members especially required in the movement of large bins from between the crowd. Crowd management forms the pulse of the entire operations of SMS. It is in the gaps created in between that cleaning actually takes place. Following the Visarjan (immersion of the idol on the 11th day), the team sets about cleaning the entire vicinity for the next three to four days, restoring it to the original set up. SMS, thus contributes to a safe, clean, accident-free and peaceful experience for devotees visiting Lalbaugcha Raja.