TOI : Ganesh immersions get eco-friendly : Sept 17, 2007

Mumbai: As concern spreads over the ecological hazards of idol immersion, communities are banding together to staunch the pollution of water bodies during Ganesh Chaturthi. The search for a middle ground between religious symbolism and green consciousness has led to artificial wells and ponds being dug around housing enclaves to sink clay images of the Elephant God.

Residents of Pestom Sagar in Chembur, for instance, have been getting wells drilled in their neighbouring Nana Nani Park to immerse the idols. In Thane, the civic corporation has spearheaded the construction of artificial lakes. And now in the latest such effort at Dahisar, residents have persuaded the local BMC ward office to dig an artificial pool measuring 15 ft by 10 ft on an open plot in a residential area.

Earthmovers were deployed in a three-day operation at Tawdewadi and was tarpaulin used to line the 8-ft-deep pit to keep water heavy with dissolved clay from seeping into the ground. The first round of immersions on the half-acre land, lined with mango trees and coconut palms and decorated with a flowery arch at the entrance, was carried out on Sunday.

The Mhatrewadi Residents Welfare Association comprises 750 families spread over 63 low-rise buildings; it’s a leafy suburb that still retains the look of a gaothan. “It was our womenfolk who went from door to door to mobilise opinion for this. And most people immediately agreed,’’ said Anil Adhyapak, president of the association. “Until now, everyone would do the immersions in a large pond at Kandarpada, but they realised it was polluting the water and destroying the fish.’’

Idols made of plaster-of-Paris or clay and coated with chemical dyes are known to have a corrosive effect on the ecosystem when disposed of without checks. The emerging trend is to either use figures made of recycled paper pulp or contain the dispersion of clay in a designated area of water. In the present case, it’s taken a lot of doing though. For one, 30,000 litres of water (three tankers full) had to be pumped in to give the pond necessary depth. Secondly, local murtikars or artisans, from whom Ganesh idols were bought, had to be cajoled to come around and collect the waste clay after the 1st, 5th, 7th and 11th day of immersions.

It did help that the project was backed by the mayor since it falls within her constituency in R-North. “Shubha Raul had suggested this idea to us after an August 15 function this year. Then we got the Tawde family which owned the plot to agree, and within a couple of weeks, we had put forward the proposal to the ward office,’’ said Pramod Dighe, secretary of the Mhatrewadi Residents Association.

The experiment is not the first of its kind although it’s a trendsetter in Mumbai. The Pestom Sagar initiative in Chembur is on a slightly smaller scale. Albeit, Thane Municipal Corporation leads the way with seven artificial ponds and wells to ease the pressure on its lakes during the 10-day celebration.

sunil.nair@timesgroup.com

SAYING GOODBYE IN THE POOL: Thane residents immerse Ganesh idols in an artificial lake on Sunday