Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has directed the state administration to create a separate lane at toll plazas on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway for vehicles going for the upcoming Ganesh festival.

A statement from the chief minister's office on Sunday said the decision was taken to ease the movement of traffic on the highway.

The 10-day Ganesh festival begins on August 31 and it will be celebrated without Covid-induced restrictions after two years.

Shinde visited the Khalapur toll plaza and took the decision after a meeting with officials.

He asked for increased manpower to prevent traffic congestion and rush at toll plazas during festivals and holidays.

The CM also asked the authorities to strengthen the CCTV system to prevent accidents and ensure security on the expressway.

On Friday, the Maharashtra government had waived the toll on Mumbai-Bengaluru and Mumbai-Goa highways as well as toll plazas of other Public Works Department (PWD) roads from August 27 to September 11 in view of the Ganesh festival.

The move was aimed at providing a relief to Lord Ganesh devotees travelling from different parts of Maharashtra to the state's coastal Konkan belt.

The festivities were muted statewide in 2020 and 2021 because of pandemic norms such as cap on visitor numbers, enforcing of Covid-appropriate behaviour and compulsory scaling down of idols and pandals (arenas).