CANACONA
Canacona, the southernmost taluka, is fully geared up to celebrate the annual week-long Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations.
With just a day to go, artisans are busy giving last-minute touches to their tedious job of making Ganesh idols, while the families who bring the idol of the elephant-faced god into their homes were seen busy making last-minute purchases and other arrangements, including decorating the Ganapati mandal and collecting the ingredients required
for ‘Matoli’.
Several Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav mandals, especially at Char-rasta, Chaudi, the Police Station, Shrishthal, Gaondongrim, Loliem, Poinguinim, Agonda, and Matvemoll (Khola), are almost ready with the backdrops and scenes (Dhekave) of various concepts, only awaiting installation of the Ganesha murtis (idols) a day later. Sarvajanik mandaps are mostly decorated with fancy lighting, giving them a mostly innovative stage setting, where the Lord Ganesha murti will be placed.
Interestingly, the entire Chaudi town was hectic, with almost all the shops open and heavily visited throughout Sunday. Besides the Chaudi town, several hill-growers were seen combining in the market and roadside, selling all the forest ingredients that people want to make arrangements for Matoli.
The two prime Chari Ganesh idol-making workshops at Char-rasta, together accounting for over 400 Ganesh idols and several other large-sized Sarvajanik idols for the famous Quepem Ganeshotsav Mandal and Mala (Panjim), are 99 percent ready for D-Day on Tuesday.
When this correspondent visited the workshops, the fifth-generation Chari clan was busy giving final touches to some of the idols.
