The awareness initiatives and regulations before this year’s Ganesh Chaturthi were many, and covered across states. However, it seems that even after all those attempts, Ganesh idols made out of Plaster of Paris (PoP) still made their way onto the shores of Vishakhapatnam.
After the celebrations ended, many people found these idols littered on the beach and how this was exactly what the initiatives had been trying to prevent.
Each year, Ganesh Chaturthi, a Hindu festival is celebrated over 10 days or so and in some regions even stretches up to 21 days. The festival is celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm and gusto with people bringing over idols of Lord Ganesh into their houses, and pandals being set up where people can come together to send prayers to God.
The festival ends with called Ganesh Visarjana, which means to immerse the idol in a body of water. While the sentiments behind it are noble, however, this activity has led to a lot of environmental pollution. Clay idols of Lord Ganesh would dissolve in water, but more durable substances like Plaster of Paris (PoP) and more are not biodegradable and end up littering the beach once the celebrations are done.
As per reports, over 150,000 murtis of Ganesh are immersed in the state of Mumbai itself, but with the recent incident in Vishakhapatnam, it has come to light that the festival might not be as environmentally friendly as required.
What Happened In Vishakhapatnam?
The Ganesh Visarjan celebrations took place on Thursday in Vishakhapatnam and soon after the Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) and special teams were in charge of making sure it went smoothly.
However, citizens of the region soon brought to light that many beaches were littered with idols made from PoP and that several idols had been left on the shore and not immersed in the water as expected.
A report by The Hindu noted, “Large quantities of PoP material and plastic waste were also left behind by the revellers, in flagrant defiance of the many appeals made by the district administration and environmental organisations to opt for clay idols.”
Read More: In Pics: Durga Puja Idols Just Before The Final Touches
Sohan Hatangadi, vice-president of Greater Visakha Citizens’ Forum also commenting on this said, “The paints used on PoP idols contain heavy metals and poisonous chemicals that can pollute water and soil. We hope officials remove the debris at the earliest.”
This is after considerable steps taken by the GVMC like identifying the immersion spots that included 13 places such as Bheemili, Appikonda, Yarada, Jodugullapalem, Sagar Nagar, Naval Canteen, IT Junction, and Mangamaripeta along with the Gosthani river.
The GVMC also placed 700 extra sanitation workers in all zones except one, along with tents, barricades, generators, drinking water stations, cranes and more to help with the process. The sanitation workers were there to collect the leaves, flowers and other decorative items used for the celebration by devotees according to a GVMC health officer.
Attempts Against PoP Ganesh Idols
It’s not just Vishakhapatnam, other states have also tried to put down clear instructions on how to do the immersion process without impacting the environment.
The Telangana High Court on 10 September 2024 passed an order that only clay and eco-friendly idols can be immersed in Hyderabad’s Hussain Sagar river while PoP Ganesh idols will be immersed in artificial water tanks that the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) sets up.
Besides this, the Bombay High Court also passed an order on 31st August banning PoP Ganesh idols.
The division bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar reminded the mandals to follow the guidelines released by the Central Pollution Control Board in May 2020 that banned PoP idols.
Amit Pai, chairman of GSB Seva Mandal, Matunga, welcoming this move said, “This is the 70th year for us. We have always done pure clay (shadu mati) idols at GSB and no other materials are used. So, we aren’t much affected by this move.
In fact, our mission is to embark on a goal of carbon net zero to do our bit for the environment. We use minimal plastic, recyclable materials and banana leaves to serve food, etc.”
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Hindu, Business Standard, Hindustan Times
Find the blogger: @chirali_08
This post is tagged under: Ganesh Idols, andhra Pradesh, Visakhapatnam, Vinayaka Chathurthi, festivals, environmental pollution, Ganesh Chaturthi 2024, Ganesh Chaturthi idols, Ganesh Chaturthi environmental friendly, eco-friendly Ganesh idols, eco-friendly Ganesh idols 2024, biodegradable idols, biodegradable, Plaster of Paris, ganesh, ganpati, Bombay HC, plaster of Paris Ganesh idols ban, plaster of Paris Ganesh idols bombay ban
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