DUE to the swine flu scare, the crowd of devotees at the prestigious Shrimant Dagdusheth Ganpati Mandal has thinned to 20 per cent of what it was last year.

Those who have turned up to take a darshan of the idol, which is lavishly decorated in gold and silver ornaments, are seen wearing masks.

"Celebrations are low key this year and we have not invited any celebrity. We do expect the crowds to be larger in the days to come," said Prataprao Godse, president, Dagdusheth Ganpati Trust.

Anand Saraf, activist and research scholar, said the crowd had thinned from 1.25 lakh people last year to just 28,000 this year.

"People continue to be reluctant about coming out of their homes to pay visits to the most prestigious Ganesh mandals in the city," Saraf said.