Pune: During the Ganesh immersion procession in Pune on Tuesday (September 17) evening, a fire broke out at the back of a chariot carrying an idol.

The incident occurred at around 6 PM during the procession of Ganpati Chowk Mitra Mandal. The fire was caused by fireworks that ignited the decorative elements of the chariot.

Fortunately, volunteers present at the scene acted quickly, using available resources to extinguish the flames, preventing what could have been a major catastrophe.

Pune and Mumbai are witnessing grand Ganesh immersion celebrations, with devotees thronging the streets to bid farewell to Lord Ganesh. Pune's first and second most revered idols—Kasba Ganpati and Tambdi Jogeshwari—have already been immersed amidst chants of "Ganpati Bappa Morya."

In a separate, heartbreaking incident in the Indapur taluka of Pune, a 16-year-old boy named Aniket Vinayak Kulkarni tragically drowned during Ganesh immersion.

The incident took place in the village of Shree Kshetra Nira Narsinghpur around 3 PM. Aniket, who had been studying at the Lakshmi Narasimha Veda School for nine years, went to the Nira River's Lakshmi Ghat for the immersion ritual.

Unfortunately, he slipped and drowned in the river. Police officers and revenue officials, who arrived promptly, initiated a search operation using boats, which continued until late in the evening. However, Aniket was not found by the time the search ended for the day.