The Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation has built a concrete wall inside a natural lake and designated one section as an artificial pond for Ganesh idol immersion, prompting an environmental complaint over the treatment of the water body and the disposal of plaster-of-Paris and chemically painted idols.
The civic administration has said that plaster-of-Paris and chemical-painted idols can be immersed in the separated section of the lake. Environmental activist and journalist Dheeraj Parab has objected to the arrangement, alleging that the municipal corporation has divided a natural water source instead of creating a separate artificial pond or installing immersion tanks.
The dispute centres on guidelines issued by the Bombay High Court and the Maharashtra government. These guidelines prohibit the immersion of idols below six feet in natural water sources and direct civic authorities to provide artificial ponds or tanks for such idols. The rules are intended to prevent materials used in idols, including plaster of Paris and chemical colours, from entering natural lakes and other water bodies.
According to the complaint, the concrete wall has divided the lake into two sections, with one part subsequently being treated as an artificial pond for immersion. Parab has alleged that the arrangement violates directions issued by the court, the state government and the National Green Tribunal. The complaint has been addressed to Mira Bhayandar Municipal Commissioner Radhabinod Sharma.
The complaint also alleges that plaster-of-Paris and chemically painted idols immersed in natural water sources during the previous year were not removed and scientifically disposed of. The supplied report does not provide details of the number of idols involved, the quantity of material recovered or the method used for disposal.
The controversy highlights a recurring administrative challenge for urban local bodies during the Ganesh festival: providing sufficient immersion facilities while protecting natural water bodies. Artificial ponds and tanks are generally required to keep prohibited materials out of natural lakes, but in this case the municipality has used a constructed barrier within an existing lake as part of its arrangement.
The municipal corporation has disputed the allegation that its plan breaches the applicable rules. Commissioner Sharma said measures for idol immersion had been planned within the framework of the relevant guidelines. The report does not include a separate municipal explanation of the lake’s legal or environmental status, the technical design of the concrete wall, or how the divided section will be managed after immersion.
The complaint now places the municipality’s festival arrangements under scrutiny from an environmental compliance perspective. The immediate questions are whether the separated section qualifies as an artificial pond under the applicable directions, how the water and immersed material will be handled, and whether the civic body will remove and scientifically dispose of the idols after the festival. The municipal administration’s stated position is that its arrangements comply with the court, state government and National Green Tribunal guidelines.
