On the first day of Ganpati idol immersion on Wednesday night, four devotees — one in Virar East and three in Wada taluka — drowned in the Palghar district. The district administration has asked citizens to be careful during idol immersion in water bodies. Chaos erupted at two locations in Wada taluka as people were swept away by the water. The Wada police conducted rescue operations.

Chaos in Wada

In one incident, Prakash Thackeray, 45, entered a lake in Gorhe village to immerse an idol while inebriated. Police Inspector Suresh Kadam of Wada police said, “Though Thackeray knew how to swim, he was inebriated and could not correctly gauge the danger. He drowned on Wednesday night. His body was recovered on Thursday morning. He was a farmer residing in Wada taluka.”