Few additions to the post by Lady S

Note : Parts in red are added by me

Ganesha is widely worshiped as the god of wisdom, prosperity and good fortune. Legend has it Lord Ganesha was created by goddess Parvati, consort of Lord Shiva. Parvati created Ganesha out of sandalwood paste and breathed life into the figure. She then set him to stand guard at her door while she bathed. However, while she bathed, Lord Shiva returned and as Ganesha didn't know him, he didn't allow him to enter. Lord Shiva became enraged and severed the head of the child and entered his house. After realizing that he had beheaded his own son, Lord Shiva fixed the head of an elephant in place of Ganesha's head. Thus, he became depicted as the elephant-headed God.

There is a lil story behind the elephants head as well . Indra the Lord of Heaven , had an white Elephant called Airavat . Airavat was basically the Lords mode of transport . Now Indra and Airavat were a mischievous lot , I can’t recall why , but Airavat was sent down to earth for atonement of his sins. When Shiva severed the head of his child , Parvati was mad enough to destroy everything. Hence at the request of other Deities , Shiva sent his trusted men to get the head of the 1^st being they see. His men chance upon Airavat on earth and behead him. This way Airavat was able to “serve his time” and then get back to being Indra’s mode of transport in heaven and Ganpati ( Ganesha) got a umber cool trunk :D

Celebration, rituals and tradition
Two to three months prior to Ganesh Chaturthi, artistic clay models of Lord Ganesha are made for sale by skilled artisans. They are beautifully decorated & depict him in various poses. Sizes of these statues vary from 3/4 of an inch to over 70 feet. They are shown in colorfully decorated homes and specially erected temporary structures in every locality. Pandals are erected by the people or a specific society or group by collecting monetary contributions. They are decorated specially for the festival by using decorative items such as flower garlands, lights, etc., which depict religious themes or current events. Public celebrations are hugely popular, with local communities vying with each other to put up the biggest statue and best pandal. The festival is also the time for cultural activities like singing and theater performances, orchestra and community activities like free medical checkup, blood donation camps, charity for the poor, and involvement in the form of intellectual discourses, poetry recitals, performances of plays, musical concerts, and folk dances. It serves as a meeting ground for people of all castes.

We just had the Ganesh Chaturthi from 1^st of September to 11^th of September. The Festival last for 11 days . But a family who brings home Ganpati can immerse the idol after one and half days , 3days , 5 days 7 days or 10 days. My city ( (Pune) started the tradition of celebrating the festival together on a large scale and still is the number one destination to experience the madness. Mumbai ( formerly Bomaby ) has the tallest statues as it has a luxury of owning the sea and being able to immerse idols upto 70 feet or even more.

The festival is observed in the Hindu calendar month of Bhaadrapada, starting on the fourth day of the waxing moon period. The date usually falls between 20 August and 15 September. Ganesha is worshiped for 10 days. On the 11th day, the statues are taken through the streets in a procession accompanied with dancing, singing, and fanfare to be immersed in a river or the sea symbolizing a ritual see-off of the Lord in his journey towards his abode while taking away with him the misfortunes of his devotees. All join in this final procession shouting "Ganapati Bappa Morya, Pudhachya Varshi Laukar ya" (O lord Ganesha, come again early next year) in Maharastra and "Ganesh Maha Raj ku, Jai" (lord Ganesha, victory is yours) in Andhra Pradesh.
A final offering of coconuts, flowers and camphor is made. The main sweet dish during the festival is the modak. A modak is a dumpling made from rice flour/wheat flour with a stuffing of fresh or dry-grated coconut, jaggery, dry fruits and some other condiments. It is either steam-cooked or fried. Another popular sweet dish is the karanji, which is similar to the modak in composition and taste but has a semicircular shape.

On the last day i.e. the 11^th day as Lady S rightly said, there is a procession. The video below is the procession.

But the best part is when the “pathak” (troop) performance at every big cross roads . So enjoy this video , its not the dhol ( big drums ) and tashas( the smaller ones ) video , but you will get the beats from the song which was pictured for a Marathi Movie

PS: keep a check on the speaker volume

OH AND IT’S A LOT OF FUN DANCING TO THE BEATS RIGHT ON THE STREET !

Today, the Ganesh Festival is not only a popular festival, but has become a very critical and important economic activity. Many artists, industries, and businesses survive on this mega-event. Ganesh Festival also provides a stage for budding artists to present their art to the public. In Maharashtra, not only Hindus but many other religions also participate in the celibration of Ganesha festival like Muslims, Jains, Christian and others. This festival managed to re-establish unity among the Indians during British Era.

In the United Kingdom, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated by the migrant Hindu population as well as the large number of Indians residing there. The Hindu culture and Heritage Society, UK - a Southall based organisation celebrated Ganesh Chaturthi for the first time in London in 2005 at The Vishwa Hindu Temple. The Idol was immersed in the river Thames at Putney Pier. Another celebration organised by an Gujarati group has been celebrated in the Southend on Sea which attracts over 18000 devotees. Annual celebrations also take place on the River Mersey at Liverpool.

The festival is similarly celebrated in many locations across the world. In the USA, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated by various associations of Telugu speaking people. The Philadelphia Ganesh is the largest Hindu festival in North America. Since 2005 the festival is conducted every year in Bharatiya Temple, Chalfont, PA. The 10 days are marked by processions, devotional programs, cultural events, India film-orchestra and a weekend carnival. While the Marathi community plays a big role in organizing the festival, participation from all communities is seen as the reason for its success and uniqueness. Celebration of Ganesh Chaturthi in Mauritius dates back to 1896. Over the years the festival gained such popularity on the island that Mauritian government attributed a public holiday for that day. In Canada, Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated by various associations of Marathi speaking people.

I have an incident to share , my neighbours son was studying in US , during Ganpati , he and few of his friend brought the idol home , decorated the place and went on with all the necessities . Now they faced a huge problem about submerging the idol in the water . He went to all the authorities trying to get permission for the same, he had made sure that the idol was eco friendly , made of clay to be exact and that there was no harm . But how much every they tried they did not get the permission.

So brilliant that they were , they got Dhol and tasha , had a small procession starting from there house to the next block and back again , accompanied by dhol , tashas and lot of dancing. Came back home and submerged the idol in the bucket full of water !!!! hahahahahahahaha

Environmental impact

The most serious impact on the natural environment is due to the immersion of icons into lakes, rivers and the sea. Traditionally, the Ganesh icon was sculpted out of earth taken from nearby one’s home. After worshipping the divinity in this earth icon, it was returned back to the Earth by immersing it in a nearby water body. This represented the cycle of creation and dissolution in Nature. However, as the production of Ganesh icons on a commercial basis grew, the earthen or natural clay was replaced by Plaster of Paris; a man made material, easier to mould, lighter and less expensive than clay. However, plaster takes much longer to dissolve and in the process of dissolution releases toxic elements into the water body. The chemical paints used to adorn these plaster icons themselves contain heavy metals like mercury and cadmium, hence causing water pollution. Also on the days of immersion various non-biodegradable accessories that originally adorned the god manage to accumulate in the layers of sand on the beach. Noise pollution is also an unfortunate outcome. Several non-governmental and governmental bodies have been addressing this issue.

Lady S , past few years our government has become strict (finally) and now we have huge rectangular tanks filled with water . So don’t you worry :D