ADILABAD: When youngsters in Adilabad town get into the Ganesh festival mode, it is leisure and fun all the way.

Preparations for the 11-day community celebrations here start about one month before Ganesh Chaturthi, the day when idols are installed amid ceremonies.

There are 100 regular Ganesh mandals or associations that boast of a membership of over a 100 youth each. Besides, there are numerous smaller associations formed by children of the locality concerned.

One of the important assignments before preparations for the festival begin is mobilisation of funds for celebrations. The money at the disposal of respective Ganesh mandals influences the selection of idol of the Lord in terms of its size and decorative characteristics.

The bigger units in town often prefer elaborately decorated and expensive idols imported from Hyderabad and Nagpur cities.

The price of one such idol can sometimes even go up to Rs. 2 lakhs. The other important selection pertains to the band which is used on the day of nimajjanam. Maharashtra's `teen mar' bands are very popular with local mandals.

The time for revival of the association starts about July end when friends come together after a lapse of one year to organise the festivities once again.

Slowly, the involvement of individuals in organising the preparations goes full time.

The decoration includes showcasing the idol of Lord Ganesh according to a current theme, which may be drawn from as diverse subjects as politics and sports.

For example, in 1999 Lord Ganesh was shown showering his blessings on Indian soldiers in the Himalayas as that time related to the Kargil war.

In addition to the local mandals, Ganesh mandals are also organised by different sections of the society.

Like, the local masons, painters, Gujaratis, etc have associations which organise the festivities.

Though there is a centralised procession for the nimajjanam which is organised on the 11th day from installation, many mandals prefer nimajjanam either on the 5th or 9th day itself.

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