Millions of Hindus in India joined the 10-day festivities to commemorate the birth of Lord Ganesh — the elephant-head deity ― with pomp and fervour after a two-year pandemic-enforced lull.
The festival is celebrated annually to honour Lord Ganesh, revered as the god of wisdom.
Huge marquees are set up across the country where an idol of the deity is installed on a high platform, ostentatiously decorated with flowers.
Hundreds of thousands of devotees visit these marquees to offer prayers and bring sweets and fruit as offerings to the deity.
Many devotees also place an idol at their homes for a minimum of one and a half days for intimate celebrations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday posted a picture of himself while offering prayers.
"Best wishes on Ganesh Chaturthi. May the blessings of Bhagwan Shri Ganesh always remain upon us," Mr Modi tweeted.
In western Maharashtra state, Ganesh Chaturthi is a major festival and is celebrated in the grandest manner, with elaborate street processions.
With Covid case numbers ebbing, the state government withdrew all Covid-19 restrictions to allow huge gatherings of devotees to celebrate the festival after two years of lukewarm festivities.
The height limits for the idols for the procession, reduced to 1.2 metres during the pandemic, were also withdrawn.
In the state capital, Mumbai, at Siddhivinayak Temple, one of the most famous Ganesh temples in the country, hundreds of devotees gathered to witness the prayers and seek blessings early on Wednesday morning.
At another popular pavilion, a 4.2m idol of Lalbaughcha Raja, loosely translated to Red Garden’s King, the most famous Ganesh idol in the city, was unveiled.
The pavilion receives more than two million devotees every day during the festival, according to Balasaheb Kamble, the president of the Lalbaugcha Raja committee that has been organising the festival since 1934.
Large groups of devotees from faraway places camped outside on a narrow footpath, a kilometre from the pavilion, in hope of catching the first glimpse of the idol on Wednesday.
“We came from Ratnagiri and we have been camping outside the pavilion for the last four days. We come here every year,” Nilesh Bagwadh told a local newspaper.
The organisers said that close-circuit cameras were installed at the site for security reasons and more than 4,000 volunteers were deployed to manage the large gathering.
At Chennai in southern Tamil Nadu, devotees flocked to a famous temple, known as Lakhsmi Visa Ganpathi temple, with the hopes of travelling abroad.
The temple is famous among visa-seekers who believe praying to the God will fulfil their dream of obtaining a visa.
In northern Uttar Pradesh, where the festivities have picked up with the migration of the community from Maharashtra, several small-scale pavilions have been erected in residential neighbourhoods.
“It feels wonderful to be able to celebrate the festival like this after two years … the real essence of celebrating any festival is in the community gathering, with your family and friends,” Rekha Gupta, a resident of Noida, a city outside the capital New Delhi, told The National.
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Oman, UAE, Namibia
Al Amerat, Muscat
Results
Oman beat UAE by five wickets
UAE beat Namibia by eight runs
Fixtures
Wednesday January 8 –Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 – Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 – UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
Stage 2 results
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 04:18:18
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:02
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:04
4 Diego Ulissi (ITA) UAE Team Emirates
5 Rick Zabel (GER) Israel Start-Up Nation
General Classification
1 Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal 07:47:19
2 Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep 00:00:12
3 Arnaud Demare (FRA) Groupama-FDJ 00:00:16
4 Nikolai Cherkasov (RUS) Gazprom-Rusvelo 00:00:17
5 Alexey Lutsensko (KAZ) Astana Pro Team 00:00:19
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Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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Friday Athletic Bilbao v Celta Vigo (Kick-off midnight UAE)
Saturday Levante v Getafe (5pm), Sevilla v Real Madrid (7.15pm), Atletico Madrid v Real Valladolid (9.30pm), Cadiz v Barcelona (midnight)
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Tailors and retailers miss out on back-to-school rush
Tailors and retailers across the city said it was an ominous start to what is usually a busy season for sales.
With many parents opting to continue home learning for their children, the usual rush to buy school uniforms was muted this year.
“So far we have taken about 70 to 80 orders for items like shirts and trousers,” said Vikram Attrai, manager at Stallion Bespoke Tailors in Dubai.
“Last year in the same period we had about 200 orders and lots of demand.
“We custom fit uniform pieces and use materials such as cotton, wool and cashmere.
“Depending on size, a white shirt with logo is priced at about Dh100 to Dh150 and shorts, trousers, skirts and dresses cost between Dh150 to Dh250 a piece.”
A spokesman for Threads, a uniform shop based in Times Square Centre Dubai, said customer footfall had slowed down dramatically over the past few months.
“Now parents have the option to keep children doing online learning they don’t need uniforms so it has quietened down.”
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Stars: Dave Bautista, Ella Purnell, Omari Hardwick, Ana de la Reguera
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Specs%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%20train%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V8%20and%20synchronous%20electric%20motor%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20power%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E800hp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20torque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E950Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEight-speed%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E25.7kWh%20lithium-ion%3Cbr%3E0-100km%2Fh%3A%203.4sec%3Cbr%3E0-200km%2Fh%3A%2011.4sec%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E312km%2Fh%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20electric-only%20range%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2060km%20(claimed)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Q3%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFrom%20Dh1.2m%20(estimate)%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLE
Price, base / as tested Dh274,000 (estimate)
Engine 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder
Gearbox Nine-speed automatic
Power 245hp @ 4,200rpm
Torque 500Nm @ 1,600rpm
Fuel economy, combined 6.4L / 100km
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
PROFILE OF SWVL
Started: April 2017
Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport
Size: 450 employees
Investment: approximately $80 million
Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani
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THE SPECS
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