The use of Ganpati idols made of Plaster of Paris (PoP) has seen a remarkable decline this year. This year, of the total Ganesh idols immersed in artificial tanks across the city, 2.81% were found to be made of PoP. With this, there has been a drop of 4.81%, revealed an affidavit submitted by the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) at the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court on Tuesday. According to the NMC’s affidavit, 162,212 Ganesh idols were immersed this year. Of these, 4,706 (2.81 %) were found to be made of PoP. This reflects a concerted effort to reduce the environmental impact associated with the immersion of PoP idols, which can pose a major hazard to local water bodies. The affidavit, filed on October 1, also detailed the actions taken by NMC’s Nuisance Detection Squad (NDS) during the Ganesh Festival. From August 27 to September 7, the NDS conducted inspections of 92 shops and seized 801 PoP idols and imposed a fine of Rs 9.20 lakh on the shop-owners.

 

In addition, NMC had arranged 419 artificial tanks throughout the city to facilitate environmentally-friendly idol immersion during the festival. The move follows a directive from the High Court, which mandated the NMC to provide a comprehensive report detailing its actions against the use of PoP idols during the festival. The Court had appealed NMC to submit a guarantee letter regarding the non-usage of PoP for Ganesh idols in future. The High Court’s intervention based on the concerns over the environmental hazards linked to the immersion of PoP idols in natural water sources.

 

The Court has initiated a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on the matter and compelled the NMC to ensure compliance with the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines aimed at protecting water bodies of the city. Adv Shreerang Bhandarkar appeared as amicus curiae, Adv Gemini Kasat representing the NMC, and Adv Ravi Sanyal for the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB).