Eco-friendly Ganeshotsav is on the cards as the awareness is created by artists and both media and newspapers giving it a green hope. The question relating to Ganpati Festival now stands at that asking which idol people would like to opt for during this time and the answer is in affirmative that the idols will be dissolved in water. The idols are filled with tulsi or lady’s finger seeds that transform into plants on pouring water after 1 1/2 days, 3 or 5 days as the case may be for the period as per the costume prevailing in the area. Ill effects of POP and Chemical Paints have been known to people very well and they are ready to celebrate Ganpati Festival in Eco-friendly way. Paint from Ganesh idols could form a deadly cocktail with oil spill on the sea may cause environmental problem after Ganpati immersion on Anant Chaurdashi day. The oil paint contains carcinogenic heavy metal such as lead, mercury and chromium which have an adverse effect on marine life as well. The Plaster of Paris used in the idols also takes a long time to dissolve as per the analysis of environmentalists. It is time to have a broader outlook on this subject. There lies the green hope in the metro city.
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
