India GO
Ganesh Chaturthi in Hyderabad: Khairatabad Ganesh and the immersion day
Ten days when Mumbai belongs to Ganesha
Hyderabad’s Ganesh festival runs 4–14 September 2027 (expected) and builds to one day: Anant Chaturdashi (14 September 2027, expected), when the Khairatabad Ganesh, the city’s best-known idol, inches about 2 km to Hussain Sagar and is lowered into the lake by crane, while processions from across the city queue along the shore.
Hyderabad's festival builds to one day: the towering Khairatabad idol inches two kilometres to Hussain Sagar and is lowered in by crane, while processions from across the city queue along the lake.
Where to watch
Khairatabad Ganesh: the city's tallest idol, 69 feet in 2025 and 2026, made new each year; darshan through the ten days. Khairatabad metro station.
NTR Marg and Tank Bund, Hussain Sagar: the main immersion front, with cranes along the shore; the Khairatabad idol goes in at NTR Marg.
Balapur Ganesh: the south-eastern pandal known for its laddu auction on the immersion morning; its procession crosses the old city to Hussain Sagar.
Free viewing
- NTR Marg, Tank Bund and Necklace Road on Anant Chaturdashi, where the immersions are watched from the shore
- The Shobha Yatra route from Khairatabad past Telephone Bhavan and the Secretariat to NTR Marg
- The old-city stretch of the main procession route around Charminar
The Khairatabad Ganesh
The idol was first installed in Khairatabad in 1954 by Singari Shankaraiah, a freedom activist and later a corporator, who took up Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s call to keep Ganesh Chaturthi as a public festival. It started at one foot tall and for decades grew by about a foot a year. It is made new every year by the Sri Ganesh Utsav Committee, Khairatabad, and has been around 69 feet (about 21 m) tall in recent years.
Since 2022 the idol has been made of clay rather than plaster of Paris, after the Telangana High Court banned the immersion of plaster idols in Hussain Sagar. For ten days it stands in its pandal for darshan; on the eleventh it leaves for the lake. More about the god: Ganesha.
How the festival runs in Hyderabad
Chaturthi is 14 September 2027 (expected); Anant Chaturdashi, the immersion day, is 14 September 2027 (expected).
- Chaturthi: the idols are installed
Neighbourhood pandals and homes install their Ganesh. The Khairatabad idol is open for darshan from now through the ten days; Khairatabad metro station is the nearest stop.
- The ten days
Evening aartis and drums in the pandals; the queues at Khairatabad grow towards the end.
- The day before Anant Chaturdashi
Arrive by now for a last darshan of the Khairatabad idol in its pandal.
- Immersion morning
The Khairatabad idol sets off on its Shobha Yatra and takes more than five hours to cover about 2 km past Telephone Bhavan and the Secretariat to NTR Marg. In the south-east, Balapur Ganesh holds its laddu auction, then its procession crosses the old city towards Hussain Sagar.
- Afternoon into night
Cranes along NTR Marg and Tank Bund lower the idols into the lake one by one; processions from across the city keep arriving after dark.
Getting around on the immersion day
On Anant Chaturdashi the roads to Hussain Sagar close and traffic is diverted for the processions, so plan the day on foot and by metro. In recent years the metro has run late on the immersion night; check Hyderabad Metro and the Hyderabad Traffic Police for the year’s timings and diversions. See the Hyderabad metro and Hussain Sagar.
The immersion crowd is mostly local and Hyderabad has a large stock of hotels, so rooms three to four weeks ahead are usually enough. The rooms worth booking early are the few within walking distance of the lake.
Etiquette and safety
The UK Foreign Office (FCDO) advises avoiding large gatherings, including at religious sites, and notes that stampedes have occurred at events with large crowds, including religious gatherings.
- At the shore — Watch from the shore at NTR Marg, Tank Bund or Necklace Road, and keep back from the cranes and the water’s edge.
- Valuables — Keep valuables in front pockets: the procession crowds are dense for hours, and the FCDO warns of pickpockets in busy tourist areas.
- In the pandal — Take shoes off where others do and do not touch the idol unless the line allows it.
- A meeting point — Agree where to meet before you join the crowd on the shore.
FAQ
Which is the biggest Ganpati in Hyderabad?
The Khairatabad Ganesh, made new each year and around 69 feet (about 21 m) tall in recent years. It is the city’s best-known idol and the one immersed by crane at NTR Marg.
Where to go on Ganesh Chaturthi in Hyderabad?
The Khairatabad pandal for darshan during the ten days, and Hussain Sagar on the immersion day: NTR Marg, Tank Bund and Necklace Road along the shore.
How many days does the Khairatabad Ganesh stay?
Ten days in its pandal for darshan; it is immersed in Hussain Sagar on the eleventh, Anant Chaturdashi (14 September 2027, expected).
Is Ganesh Chaturthi celebrated in Hyderabad?
Yes, as a mass public festival: pandals across the city for ten days, and an immersion day on which processions from all over Hyderabad converge on Hussain Sagar.
What is the Balapur laddu?
The laddu offered to Balapur Ganesh, in the south-east of the city, is auctioned on the immersion morning before the idol’s procession sets off for Hussain Sagar.
Sources (4)
Facts checked: 21 October 2026. Prices and hours are approximate; check locally.