Realty dawns on Ganapati mandals

Developers with projects in the vicinity of mandals have not only refused donations but are also not committing ads. The mandals,sources said,were getting only a fraction of what they would normally get,even from established real estate firms.

As a consequence,they may scale down celebrations.

Naresh Dahibawkar,Chairperson of Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samit,the umbrella body of Ganpati mandals in the city,said: “Donations and other collections from builders have seen a drastic fall. Last year was an election year during which builders were the biggest donors and this year,the real estate market is dull.”

“We have received less than 20 per cent of what we collected in 2011. Local devotees and members of the mandals are,however,donating generously,” said Sanjay Sawant,Vice President,Lalbaug Sarvajanik Utsav Mandal of Ganesh Galli. The mandal in Girgaum had collected over Rs 50 lakh last year through donations and advertisements from builders.

Developers use Ganesh mandals to market upcoming housing projects during the 11-day festival. Huge hoardings and banners displaying names of real estate firms are a common fixture at the mandals. A city-based developer with projects in the Andheri-Borivali belt said a severe cash crunch,given the sluggish sales,had prevented them from donating large amounts to mandals. “A lot of housing projects were launched in central Mumbai areas such as Parel,Dadar and South Mumbai,including Girgaum,last year and builders were hence keen on advertisements,” he said.

Mandals are,however,reluctant to admit that they will compromise on the grandeur. They claim members and volunteers are chipping in to tide over the deficit. “Even if builders and corporators are unable to donate much,we have strong resource base of volunteers who have donated double the amounts than last year,” said Dahibawkar.

“Lack of donations and advertisements will not affect big mandals such as ours much,but celebrations at middle-rung mandals may be toned down,” said Nilesh Patel,President of Shri Balgopal Taluka Malabar Hill Raja Ganesh Mandal.

“Ganpati celebrations this year seem to be low-key. Due to elections last year,corporators and builders showered funds on the mandals. This year,only those who won will support the mandals. Real estate being down has also affected funding,” said Rahul Shewale,senior Shiv Sena corporator.