Religion has got nothing to do with the environment. No religion says that you have to immerse your idols only in the sea, said Raul. My idea was to immerse home idols in artificial ponds, and prevent marine pollution. Although we cannot make this compulsory for the sarvajanik mandals, there has been a positive response from individual families and we want more such families to adopt to artificial ponds, she told Newsline.
The pamphlet published by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) with an appeal from the mayor says, While celebrating this festival, devotees pray to lord Ganesha with great faith. If the same emphasis is also laid on the environment, our future generations will be able to celebrate the festival with double joy.
Raul has appealed to all households to immerse the idols in artificial ponds instead of going to the sea. Citing example of Pune, which already faces the problem of immersion in its two polluted rivers, she pointed out that large idols are used in mandals only for puja while small clay idols are actually immersed.
Around 1,60,000 home idols are immersed in the sea each year and the number is expected to increase by another 20,000 idols this year. The mayor had sparked off controversy after she spoke in favour of the environment and suggested that Ganpati idols should not be immersed in the sea as Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols are hard to dissolve and result in marine pollution.
She had also recommended that the height of idols from mandals be reduced and that they be made of natural soil. Despite protests from various quarters for hurting the religious sentiments of people by telling them to take a green turn, Raul has been silently going ahead with her plans.
She now hopes that by next year, even the sarvajanik mandals too would take the eco-friendly route by reducing the idol height, and more and more households take the green route. On Thursday, around 278 idols came to my place for immersion. This figure itself shows that people are supporting the move. I am against hurting anyones religious sentiments; all I want is a hygienic and environmentally safe way to celebrate the festival.