bal thackeray to be cremated today final procession reaches mahim

by Ravi Dixit | November 17, 2012 at 05:20 pm

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Mumbai 10:30 The final procession has now reached Mahim Church and moving towards Shivaji Park. The shut down of the city is so complete that it is getting reflected in the air fairs from Mumbai to various destinations. You can buy a Delhi ticket for today for INR 8600 odd and a Mumbai Ahmedabad for INR 4000 odd.

Mumbai 9:25 AM The final procession has started from Matoshree located at Bandra East Mumbai and it is expected to take upto three hours to reach Shivaji Park where Bal Thackeray will be cremated in the evening. In a new development that the body will not be kept at Sena Bhawan and will be taken straight to Shivaji Park. Western Express highway is a swarm of humans and the skywalk is full of people who want to catch the last glimpse of Balasaheb.

The Bandra Worli sealink is open for traffic and so is S V Road, Western Expressway is closed for traffic around Bandra East.

Mumbai the Financial Capital of India failed to wake up this Sunday morning as Balasaheb Keshav Thackeray who died yesterday will be cremated today evening.

Bal Thackeray started off his career as a journalist with Free Press Journal and was a contemporary of R K Laxman. Bal Thackeray launched Shiv Sena in 1966 and lead the party till he breathed his last yesterday.

Mumbai News:

The city started shutting yesterday evening from 5 PM when the news of his demise was formally announced. All commercial establishments including restaurants, shows, petrol pumps, offices, malls were shut within hours. It was like the whole city decided to retreat to the safety of their homes. 30,000 cabs and 90,000 autos also stopped plying by the nightfall.

Today as the sun is getting ready to rise over the city that never sleeps, autos and taxis are off the road. People returning from Diwali vacations will have a tough time reaching their homes as there will be no transport available at either airports or railway stations. The only form of public road transport available will be BEST Buses.

However the westerns and central railways have cancelled their weekly mega blocks and commuters can use the local trains today unlike other Sundays.

Bal Thackeray Cremation:

His body will leave Matoshree at about 7:00 to 7:30 AM and will travel to Shivaji Park where he will be cremated between 5 to 6 PM. Lacs of people are expected to visit shivaji park and pay their last respect to the tiger. Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray are expected to stand side by side at Shivaji Park today

Mumbai Police:

Mumbai police has advised the residents of Mumbai and its suburbs to stay indoors and go out only in the case of an emergency.