Ganeshotsav - as we know it.

'Lokmanya' Bal Gangadhar Tilak introduced the practice of installing large images and idols of Ganesha in public places and he was the one who also established the practice of submerging all the idols on tenth day of the festival. Ganesh Chaturthi thus moulded from a household ritual to the form of cultural events . It also served as a meeting point for common people of all castes and communities, at a time when social and political gatherings were forbidden by the British Rule.

http://www.google.co.in/search?q=ganesh+chaturthi+bal+gangadhar+tilak

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Understanding Gaņapati: Insights into the Dynamics of a Cult. New Delhi: Manohar Publishers. ISBN 81-7304-195-4.