This year, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) also put tight limits on the immersion of idols in city lakes in order to prevent pollution of water sources. In the city’s lakes of Futala, Gandhi Sagar, Sakkardara, and Sonegaon, idol immersion typically takes place.
The lakes in Sonegaon, Sakkardara, and Gandhi Sagar, however, are undergoing rehabilitation and upkeep. Due to the musical fountain, the city authority prohibited idol immersion in Futala Lake, hence the water level in all three lakes is almost zero.
Every year, before the Ganesh festival, NMC would cover the banks of these lakes with tin shelters to prevent idol immersion in these lakes.
The barricading at Futala Lake has yet to begin this year, which is a big concern for NGOs and environmental campaigners.
Normally, the civic organisation covers every nook and cranny of Futala Lake with tin huts, but this has not yet begun and the Visarjan will begin on Tuesday.
“We have started the process of blocking off all four city lakes, and it will be finished by Monday. In order to prevent immersion in water bodies, we are also building artificial tanks close to all of the lakes, according to Dr Gajendra Mahalle, Deputy Municipal Commissioner, Solid Waste Management Department, NMC.
When asked about the covering-up of Futala Lake premises, Dr. Gajendra Mahalle said, “It will take one day time to cover up the whole premises of Futala Lake and it will be completed by Monday.”
To smoothly conduct the process of immersion at Futala Lake, the civic body is installing a total of 12 artificial tanks on both sides of the lake. Citizens can immerse 4-foot-tall Ganesh idols in these lakes and big idols will not be allowed in these artificial tanks. For big idols, citizens will have to go outside the city, in Koradi for the immersion of the big idols.
To avoid idol immersion inside the city water bodies, the civic body is going to install 413 artificial tanks in all zones and also put hundreds of Nirmalya Kalash in all zones to celebrate the eco-friendly and clean Ganesh festival.
Along with this, the civic body will run mobile immersion tanks throughout the city this year in which citizens can perform the immersion in case they are unable to reach the artificial tanks.
The civic body will be taking the help of NGOs of the city including Green Vigil Foundation, Tejaswini Mahila Manch, Rotary Clubs of Nagpur, Lions Club of Nagpur, Swachh Nagpur etc. to volunteer the immersion sites in all four lake premises of the city.
Also, NCC and NSS cadets will extend their helping hands to the civic body for the collection of Nirmalya at the immersion sites and will try to sensitise the people to celebrate the clean, eco-friendly Ganesh festival.
The Police Department, Fire and Emergency Department, Nuisance Detection Squad and other departments of the civic administration are working hard for the smooth conduct of the ‘Ganesh Visarjan’ throughout the city and aim to minimise pollution due to it.
