e also diligently keeps the sacred space clean, sweeps the floor at the end of the journey and goes around with the donation booklet. He does manage to collect a significant amount by the end of the trip. He is paid Rs 100 a day for his services.
For passengers, the idea of Lord Ganesh travelling with them is simply divine.
"I feel safe. Lord Ganesh is with me. Nothing can go wrong when he is around. There are so many things happening around us. But, when Ganpati Bappa himself is with us, why worry," says a government employee.
"It is a different feeling altogether. When we halt at stations, people from other trains come in to pray before Ganpati Bappa. One even tends to forget where he or she is during the time the evening aarti is performed," says Mukesh Pandey, personal secretary to the state labour minister.
Image: Evening rituals, conducted by passengers of the train, in progress.
Also See:
Special: Pune's traditional Ganpatis
Images: The Ganeshas of Mumbai
Download Ganesha ringtones and images
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