The eco-friendly alternative to clay Ganesha – Focus on how immersion of these idols could control water
pollution and enrich water bodies, and can also act as manure for plants at home) This Ganesh Chaturthi, take a pledge to return to our basics, follow the path laid by our ancestors, who identified the most healthy and ecofriendly ways of celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi with tall idols that don’t hurt the planet. This year, instead of buying tall, colorful, plaster of paris idols that are hazardous to the environment, bring home
eco-friendly idols of the God.

Most people try to one-up their neighbors, society, or get more likes on social media, with huge Ganesha idols that add to the ecological imbalance by polluting our waterbodies. Did you know that most of the idols sold in the market are a resurrection of the previous year’s idols, which undergo a little bit of denting and painting and is resold at an obnoxiously high price? And for the little time that these idols are in the water, they do harm. Aquatic life is greatly disturbed, the water gets unusable, the stench makes it hard for people to reside close to it, and it becomes a hub for mosquito breeding. Is this the kind of celebration we seek? Shouldn’t a festival bring in joy to all living beings? If your answer is a resounding yes, the solution is to switch to a smart, eco-friendly Ganesha that’s a much better eco-friendly alternative to clay idols. Yes, you read that right. It’s time to move over clay, as greener cow dung Ganesha here.

 

Usage of plaster of Paris to make Ganesh idols have polluted water bodies over the years, and have left most of them in an unusable state. Plaster of Paris (PoP) coated in several layers of chemical paints, take over two years to dissolve in water, which adds to the water contamination.

 

And add to this the additional waste in the form of thermocol mandap, plastic bags, flowers, etc., that get dumped into the waterbody which clog the water flow. While the clay Ganeshas dissolve easily in water, it does not help with maintaining the ecological balance in these natural water bodies. However, on the other hand, the cow dung Ganeshas made with a paste of cow dung from the desi(A2) Gir cow, vibhuti, turmeric, neem, and tamarind powder, are rich in ingredients that control water pollution & enrich water bodies.