The Covid pandemic has dampened the spirit of the people celebrating Ganesh festival this year. Including the shortening of the festival days, there is a cut in the expenditure of this annual, prime festival of Goa that all await otherwise. Most devotees welcomed home the Lord of wisdom - Ganesh for only a day-and-a-half and even Sarvajanik Ganeshotsava committees have planned to keep the idols for a brief period this time, thanks to the Coronavirus crises.
The usual Chaturthi shopping enthusiasm and fervour were amiss and the firecracker shops wore a deserted look. Many shopkeepers booked half of their usual purchases and despite this, half of their stocks remained unsold. “This year we lost our usual, annual business that used to be around this time of the year,” admitted a fire cracker seller in Margao. Endorsing his view, Rajendra Pankar, another firecracker seller from Mapusa stated, “People do not have cash in their hand this time. And the government guidelines warned them to keep the festivities restricted. That’s the reason we did not witness much sales this year. Compared to the sales we registered last year, there was 80 per cent dip this time. Sadly, most of our regular clients didn’t turn up to buy firecrackers.’ The mood to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi was very dim, as many have lost their jobs due to the pandemic. Those who have managed to retain their jobs, have experienced cuts in their salaries. The government employees too, have suffered this year, as the salaries which used to be distributed in advance to celebrate the festival, were not given in time. So, the overall spirit of the celebration was dampened, claimed a government servant from Ponda.
The government guidelines which were issued regarding the celebration of the festival were stringent and this too, did not allow the public to come out in the open to celebrate in a big way. There were rules to conclude the visarjan procedure before 10 pm and also restriction on the number of participants in the processions. Social distancing played a major role in the way the festival was celebrated. There was less meeting and greeting among even the neighbours. While bidding farewell to their favourite deity at the time of visarjan, that otherwise, ends with shouts of ‘Ganapati Bappa Morya, Pudhachya Varshi Laukar Ya’ the devotees displayed a subdued mood, but keeping the hope high that Lord Ganesh will visit early next year, bringing health and happiness.
