250 phones, 22 gold chains stolen during Ganesh immersion

Mumbai: More than 250 phones went missing and around 22 people lost their gold chains on Ganesh immersion in the city. Taking advantage of the lakhs of devotees attending the visarjan at famous places like Lalbaug, Girgaum Chowpatty, Juhu and Dadar Chowpatty, several gangs from Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and various parts of the state came to the city to carry out such thefts, said a police officer, adding that eight people have been arrested.
The police said they have reunited 38 missing girls and boys aged between two to seventeen years at Girgaum Chowpatty with the help of control room and watch tower, and public announcement system. Nineteen adults who had gone missing at the Chowpatty were also reunited they included spouses or other relatives.
“Around 22 gold chains or Mangal sutras and 60 mobile phones went missing during the Ganpati Festival most of them were during the immersion day when Lalbaugh Cha Raja and Chinchpokhli Cha Chintamani started from their pandals towards Girgaum Chowpatty. Several people suffocated due to the crowd and fell. They were immediately helped by the police,” said a police officer.
More than 30,000 policemen and 40 DCP rank officers were pressed into action for police bandobast on Visarjan day.
No chain snatching incident was reported at the Girgaum Chowpatty however 99 people reported a loss of phones at the D B Marg police station and 89 at V P Road police station.
The police said they have also acted against three people who flew drones in the air illegally without taking any permission most of them are social media influencers said the police.