The celebrations of the ten-day Ganesh Chaturthi festival started throughout the country on Wednesday. With the coronavirus pandemic no longer casting its shadow on the celebrations, Ganesh Puja is being held in a grand manner this year.
Idols of Lord Ganesh, the god of prosperity and wisdom and a slayer of obstacles, were installed in homes with pomp and gaiety and accompanied with chants of "Ganpati Bappa Morya".

Ganesh mandals in Mumbai and other major cities of Maharashtra took large idols in processions accompanied by dhol-tasha beats to their pandals in the last few days. Devotees also worshiped the famous Lalbaugcha Raja on the first day of Ganesh Chaturthi at Lalbagh and thronged vegetable and flower markets, sweet shops and roadside stalls to buy flowers, puja materials, sweets and decorative items.

Ganesha Puja, introduced in public spaces by freedom fighter Lokmanya Tilak in then Bombay province on the lines of Bengal's Durga Puja, has now become popular in Kolkata as well, a metropolis whose citizens have many devotees of goddesses Kali and Durga.

In Kolkata, the demand for Ganesha idols had grown so much this time that some artisans of the city's clay modellers hub, Kumartuli, had to turn down last-minute orders. 

On the occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, also known as Vinayaka Chaturthi, which falls this year on August 31, 2022, several states in India offer holidays for a special festival dedicated to the Hindu god Ganesha. Banks will remain closed for eight days in the month of September, excluding six weekend holidays. The holidays are decided as per the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) calendar list.

There are also some state-wise holidays which consist of all Sundays along with the second and fourth Saturdays as holidays. A customer should have a look at the bank branch holiday list before visiting the respective banks.

As the holidays and festivals vary from state to state, because India is a country of diversified culture and festive seasons, it should be considered that online banking facilities will be functioning on holidays as well.

The only thing that’s going to be affected is the withdrawal and deposit of money at the bank branches.In the month of August, banks were shut for 11 working days as per the announcements made by the state administrators.