Ahead of Ganeshotsav festival, which is one of the grand festival for whole Maharashtra Environment department has issued guidelines for festivals and celebrations. Accordingly, all idols including POPs and other idols less than five feet tall should be immersed only in artificial lakes. The Environment Department has appealed to the local bodies to carry out necessary monitoring and control in this regard, and to celebrate festivals and celebrations in an environmentally friendly manner.
The Environment and Climate Change Department has sent a letter of guidelines to the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board regarding the celebration of environmentally friendly festivals. It is stated that the instructions should be given to the local bodies. Accordingly, the manufacturers and sellers of POP idols should make a red round mark on the back of the idols with oil paint while selling them. It has been stated in these instructions that it is also mandatory for sculptors and sellers to register while selling idols.
Municipalities should set up a separate room for the registration of public bodies. After getting information about whether there is a POP idol or not, a plan and arrangement should be prepared for immersion. If the mandals install a large idol, they should encourage the use of a small idol in symbolic form for the immersion of this idol, and also appeal to use the installed large idol next year, these guidelines have been.
If the mandals have no other option for the immersion of an idol more than five feet high, then these idols will be allowed to be immersed in natural water sources. However, since these idols do not dissolve in water, the municipality should collect the immersed material the next day and dispose of it. The instructions state that the natural water source should be cleaned.