PUNE: RR Joshi retired from the Pune Regional Transport Office (RTO) nearly 32 years ago. But he has continued his hobby almost as an extension of his job—collecting scaled-down models of cars belonging to various marques. He has used this idea as a theme for the Ganesh idol at his home.“I started collecting these models a year after I retired from the motor vehicles department. Each of the 260-odd models I have is unique. I expanded my collection from old makes to the newest ones. So I had an idea of demonstrating the level of traffic snarls in the city, which I get to see almost on a daily basis, and perhaps raising some awareness about it,” Joshi told TOI.He is among several individuals or Ganeshotsav organisers who have themed the festival with awareness drives, or educate and popularise scientific temper and thought, through elaborate skits and exhibitions. His installation shows a dizzying maze of vehicles trying to negotiate a curve on a busy road, in an expression of road-lawlessness. Surrounding the Ganesh idol, there are pictures of traffic snarls in the city, which is more regular a feature as vehicular ownership increases.Others have gone down a different path. The Janwadi mandal, for example, is staging a skit on how people are almost comically attached to their phones.“Our skit aims to show how close familial relations are strained and affected because people are so constantly glued to their cellphones. The excessive use has affected people’s mental health as well. The message is to use the phone judiciously or bear the consequences of addiction,” a spokesperson from the Janwadi mandal said.The Mehunpura mandal, around which a number of schools are located, have gone down the path of science popularisation every year.“This year, we have presented the solar system, and the satellites and the probes in space right now, along with the research to advance astronomy . Besides, the schoolchildren who come here are shown around the exhibition by science experts, who also present a six-minute audio-visual show. It has been received extremely well ,” Sachin Shinde, one of the organisers, said.

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