Govt to fight ban on environmentally toxic POP idols, including going to court | Mumbai news

MUMBAI: After the Bombay high court and Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) ban on idols made of Plaster of Paris (POP), the Maharashtra government is going all out to gather “scientific evidence” to counter the fact that POP idols contribute immensely to water pollution.

State environment minister Pankaja Munde declared in the assembly that the government had requested Anil Kakodkar, head of the Rajiv Gandhi Science and Technology Commission (RJSTC), to conduct a study and share the exact reasons why POP idols were bad for water bodies. Munde said that last year, the then chief minister Eknath Shinde formed a committee headed by the chief secretary to study the matter and suggest solutions to the problem, and declared that the government would also file an intervention petition in the high court against the ban.

The minister was responding to the issue of the ban on POP idols, which was discussed in the state assembly through a calling attention motion. The ban, incidentally, was opposed by legislators across political parties in the state assembly on Wednesday.

The Bombay high court in January had directed the BMC and district collectors to strictly adhere to the ban imposed by CPCB on POP idols. This was immediately opposed by idol makers and Ganesh mandals, which said that 2,000 sculptors and 12,000 mandals would be impacted by the ban on immersing POP idols in natural water bodies.

Munde said they were bound to follow the directives of the court and the CPCB but at the same time were trying to collect evidence that could counter the claim the POP idols pollute water. “Some NGOs have met us and claimed that they are not polluting,” she told the lower house. “Given this, a request has been made to Anil Kakodkar to conduct a study and share the grounds that prove that POP pollutes water bodies.”

The environment minister further stated that the committee headed by the chief secretary had held three meetings and was expected to suggest measures that would minimise pollution in water bodies.

Munde assured the assembly that efforts were on to ensure that festivals would not be affected by the court order. “After talking to the chief minister, legal advice will be taken from the law and judiciary department, and if required, an intervention petition will be filed in the high court against the recent order,” she said.

POP is a toxic chemical and insoluble in water. This harms aquatic life. Moreover, the chemical colours that are being used to make the idols attractive are also harmful to the water, said environmental watchdog NatConnect Foundation director BN Kumar.

“The use of PoP has become popular since it is easier to mould and we have to pay heavy environmental price for this ease,” Kumar added. NatConnect also called for a total ban on using synthetic colours for the religious idols that make their way to the water bodies.

He emphasised that the green groups are not opposed to any religious celebrations. But the festivities should be environment friendly, otherwise the society will have to pay heavy price when the waters get polluted. “Water is life and chemicals such as PoP and synthetic colours reduce the life carrying capacity of our water bodies,” he remarked.