Crowds flock to Quepem as Ganeshotsav prize coupon rush begins
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The annual frenzy has begun once again in Quepem as thousands descended upon the sports complex at Borimol, all vying for a chance to win a BMW 5 Series LWB along with Rs 35 lakh in cash – the star attraction of this year's Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal donation coupons.
The prize lineup reads like luxury cars arrayed in showrooms: an Audi Q3, Toyota Innova High Cross, Mahindra BE6, Mahindra Thar, and 15 other coveted vehicles spanning premium to mid-segment categories, complemented by substantial cash rewards for lucky winners.
The opening day of the sales counters on Saturday witnessed eager 'donors' forming serpentine queues hours before dawn, stretching for up to 1.5 km – from the sports complex at Borimol to the traffic island at Tilamol.
Intermittent showers did little to deter the determined crowd, with people from all strata of society united in their pursuit of fortune.
'This is where economic barriers dissolve completely,' observed Harishchadra Naik, a local shopkeeper who has witnessed this annual spectacle for over a decade. 'Whether you're driving a luxury sedan or riding a motorbike, everyone stands in the same line waiting their turn to receive the 'mahaprasad pavati' – as devotees reverently call these donation coupons – hoping Ganapati Bappa will smile upon them.'
People from distant places like Mapusa and Sankhali were also among those who queued up for the donation coupons. Many established makeshift camps around the complex since late Friday.
The Quepem Ganeshotsav Mandal has been struggling to overcome challenges posed by the surging crowds over the years. What began as a modest local affair has mushroomed into a state-wide phenomenon. The mandal's decision to relocate the sales counters from their original venue at the Quepem municipal square to the expansive Borimol sports complex two years ago was aimed at facilitating crowd control measures.
'We learned our lessons the hard way,' admitted a mandal committee member, recalling the chaos of two years past when sales were suspended within minutes due to the failure of crowd management.
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