Citizens ensure green farewell with idols of clay

MUMBAI: The rising call to avoid harm to the environment has touched a chord with households and Ganpati mandals who are sincerely devising ways to incorporate an element of green in their celebrations.
Bal Gopal Mitra Mandal that hosts the Vile Parlecha Peshwa, for instance, makes its idol from tissue papers and immerses it in an artificial pond. This year, it is even disposing its floral waste sensibly.Mandal chief Vijay Naikude said, “A local NGO is running a campaign called ‘Sunder majhe gav, Vile Parle tyache nav’. Its volunteers have asked us to deposit our ‘nirmalya’ with them, and they will use it to prepare compost rather than dump it in the sea.”
The Mumbaikar’s preference for clay idols painted with natural colours is growing by the day. Madhurima Shinde who lives Andheri said, “Shadu mati idols are heavier, brittle and more expensive than plaster of paris. The colours do not shine as bright either. Yet my family made the switch. We installed the moorti for a day and a half and immersed it in a water tub in the society compound. We left it there for two days and on the third day, the mud was poured into the flower pots in the compound.”
Small moortis are easily fashioned from clay but it is rare to find a large idol made this way. The 21-ft tall Girgaoncha Maharaja of the Akhil Mugbhat mandal is a rare exception. Mandal chief Ketan Madan said, “Since three or four years, our mandal members themselves craft the idol using shadu mati.” Mugbhat will immerse the idol off Girgaum Chowpatty around 4am on Wednesday.
For small household idols, civic authorities have set up artificial immersion tanks and ponds. Assistant municipal commissioner of K West ward, Prashant Gaikwad said, “We have installed two such facilities, one near Lokhandwala Complex, the other near Chandan cinema in Juhu. At Juhu, we only accept clay idols.”
Despite all the efforts, the fact remains that all plaster of paris idols eventually end up in the sea. The BMC also dumps the remnants of moortis from artificial tanks into the sea.