Festive fervour leaves Yamuna gasping

Immersion of idols made out of toxic materials is damaging the river, say experts

NEW DELHI, 16/09/2016: A view of Yamuna river a day after the Ganesh Immersion, in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: Sushil Kumar Verma

Nearly two weeks after devotees from across the Capital flocked to the Yamuna to immerse idols of Lord Ganesh on the occasion of Ganesh Visarjan (immersion), the disintegrating idols and other toxic decorations continue to lie half buried along the banks of the river.

Environmentalists said that over 10,000 idols were immersed in the river at four major ghats in Delhi: Kalindi Kunj, Geeta Ghat, Kudsia Ghat and Ram Ghat.

Though the municipalities had made tall claims of clearing all the rubble from the

visarjan , the scene across the banks tell a different tale.

When

The Hindu visited some of the ghats on Saturday, discarded material from the festivities had not been picked up by the municipal authorities in violation of strict orders from the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

 

Despite orders banning the use of Plaster of Paris (POP) and paints with high levels of lead in idols, the harmful colours could be seen seeping into the soil and water of the ecologically-sensitive area.

“The debris hunters who live in homeless shelters generally dive in for any valuables or coins that the devotees immerse with the idols. The melted remains of the idols, the chunari (holy cloth wrapped around the idols), flowers and other decorations have washed up on the shores and have been lying here since,” said Manoj Raj, a caretaker of the Nigam Bodh Ghat shelter home.

The guidelines issued by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) have been going largely unheeded despite repeated reminders by the green court.

‘No trace of life’

Environmentalists said that the biological oxygen demand (BOD) of the river — a measure of organic pollution — reaches dangerously high levels during Ganesh Chaturthi and Durga Puja.

Manoj Mishra, activist and convenor of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan, said that inaction by government agencies has resulted in the degradation of the already-dying Yamuna.

“It is sad to see that the authorities do not have proper provisions of stopping the immersion of POP and lead-painted idols. Every year after the visarjan season we talk about the deplorable condition of the river, but that doesn’t stop the people or the authorities from coming back the next year. Rivers are considered holy in Hindu culture and by polluting it we are not pleasing the gods,” he said.

Quoting reports by the DPCC, Mr. Mishra said that the dissolved oxygen levels of Yamuna had plummeted below zero — leaving no trace of life in the river — after last year’s visarjan season.

Anna Ramnani, a senior scientist, said that every year the cleaning activity by the municipality and government agencies is done only around the ghats.

Passing the buck

“Many idols resurface kilometres away and these agencies don’t care about that. If sieving through the entire river stretch is a tedious task then temporary set ups could be created around the ghats and immediately after immersion the idols could be pulled out,” she said.

“Better still, strict rules should be implemented in the material used in idols,” Ms. Ramnani added.

Senior officials of the East Delhi Municipal Corporation’s sanitation department said they were still waiting for the Department of Irrigation and Flood Control to scoop out the remains of the idols from the river before they can pick it up. “In many parts of the river banks the lifting work has already been completed, but in other areas we are waiting for the government department to sieve out the remains before we can complete our job,” a senior municipal official said.

An official of the North corporation said: “If there are still any idol remains along the banks, then that will be lifted at the earliest”.