The beaches at Girgaum, Juhu, Dadar and Versova wore a clean look within hours of the 11_day Ganeshotsav drawing to a close with the visarjan (immersion) of idols, as Mumbaikars came out in full strength to help in clearing the shores of nirmalya or religious offerings and other solid waste.
Following immersion each year, the beaches are strewn with a large amount broken idols, fish that die due to water pollution, and other matter. This year, the clean-up drives at Girgaum, Juhu, Dadar and Versova beaches started well before the final visarjan day. Numerous non-governmental organisations (NGOs), schools, colleges and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) came together to pick up the leftovers, which included plastic, flowers and clothes for the idol.
Inter-collegiate fest
At Girgaum Chowpatty, Jai Hind and KPB Hinduja students came together as part of an inter-collegiate fest organised by Panaah , an NGO that has spearheaded the cleanliness drive for almost two years. “Our students got in by 10 a.m. and have been helping the BMC with the clean-up. The idea is that there must be cleanliness, especially after visarjan . The drive has shown us that there is power in unity, we have all come together to clean up our city,” said Minu Madlani, principal of KPB Hinduja.
Juhu beach shows almost no remnants of the previous day’s revelry.
With the corporation backing civilians to take an active part in cleaning, Vinod Solanki, junior engineer, Solid Waste Department, BMC said, “This year has been very progressive. Clean-up at Girgaum has been going on 24/7 from the start of Ganeshotsav, with different sets of workers coming in shifts to ensure cleanliness. We are taking the drive further by segregating the waste that was cleared.”
At Juhu beach, the cleaning started even before the visarjan ended. The BMC teamed up with volunteers from schools and colleges nearby to start the clean-up drive-by 3 a.m. as opposed to last year’s 4.30 a.m. New-generation excavators were used to remove the waste in a short time. “The fact that we started an hour early ensured the beach was cleared before noon. We had six JCB Wastemasters and and equal number of dumpers to remove the idols immediately after they were immersed. Hardly any waste was taken in by the sea, which made cleaning quicker,” Assistant Commissioner of Andheri K-West Ward, Prashant Gaikwad, said.
Mammoth effort
Ashoke Pandit, filmmaker and activist, said the entire city had come together, “a huge effort” in an attempt to respect nature.
At Versova, lawyer and beach-cleaning activist Afroz Shah led the drive. An activist said, “It was a clean-up with passion. It started on Sunday evening and went on till 11 p.m. On Monday, volunteers regrouped at 4 a.m. and worked under the moonlight proving to be an shining example for all.” . Mr. Shah said volunteers kept pouring and had to be sent back as nothing was left for cleaning in the morning. “It was a very positive sign and should become the norm,” he said.
Powai lake, on the other hand, showed a less-than-stellar effort this year. Vibha, an NGO made up of college students living in the area, came together to start clearing up the vicinity with no particular help from the BMC. A visit to the lake revealed an ugly sight, with large idols still half-immersed, while the lake was strewn with leftover crackers and offerings.
“If the BMC is not able to take care of our city, we have to take the initiative. The lake looked much worse yesterday. We have started cleaning it up bit by bit, but are not equipped with machines to remove the idols that are half-submerged,” said Babu Narayan Mudhane, a social worker with Vibha. The volunteers only managed to clear the visarjan point and the adjoining area. Officials in S Ward were unavailable for comment.
