Pandal dismantling should be done mindfully

File pic

Mumbai has bid farewell to Ganeshji with a number of post visarjan clean ups which this edit highlighted yesterday.

Power to our green warriors who are doing all they can for beaches and water bodies, never mind the cynics questioning the reason for this, or the temporary clean-ups in some cases.

The point is that an effort has been made, awareness is on the up and we have seen action across the city.

Now, we must witness pandals/mandals bringing down the makeshift structures built for the festival and restoring the road or pavement to pre-festival state.

When dismantling, there are still a few pandals around, keep safety in mind. Leave enough space for pedestrians to negotiate the roads safely and securely.

Leave rope, bamboos, any kind of iron/steel material neatly stowed away at one side or collected in a corner. This is to ensure that this does not come in a walker's way and the feet inadvertently get entangled in the rope, some old wires or other material resulting in a fall. As it is, our pavements and roads are hazardous with uneven surfaces, encroachments and undulations posing countless risks to pedestrians.

We have a tile/paver block that will seem out of place or shaky, some kind of jagged edges of stone or metal that can pierce the legs of those rushing through. Parts of a pavement are often broken.

The ‘holes' caused by the pandal bamboos need to be filled in at once, before feet sink into these holes and result in a broken limb. Leave better than before should be our festival credo.