The final phase of the Vinayakar idol immersions passed without incident in the city on Sunday, with the police ensuring heavy security on some of the arterial roads through which the idols were taken in procession.
Thousands of police personnel were posted at the five designated immersion spots at Neelankarai, Foreshore Estate, Tiruvottiyur, Royapuram Fishing Harbour, and Ramakrishna Nagar in Ennore.
Of the five designated spots, Foreshore Estate witnessed the highest number of immersions.
At one point in the afternoon, a large number of vehicles carrying idols converged at the entry point to the beach, clogging the road. Crowds of onlookers assembled to watch the immersions.
A senior officer of the Chennai city police said no untoward incidents were reported, and 18,000 police personnel were posted for maintaining law and order. He added that the installation of web cameras at 10 places on the designated routes for the processions proved helpful to police personnel.
A total of 1,600 idols from all over the city and its suburbs were immersed in the sea, with 1,450 of them belonging to the Hindu Munnani, said the officer.
Late in the evening, Hindu Munnani founder Rama Gopalan, along with a group of his supporters, were taken into preventive custody by the police, near Triplicane High Road, when they attempted to take an idol along a prohibited route.
