Mira-Bhayandar: The second edition of “Eco-Mangalmurti”-an exhibition and awareness drive to promote and encourage use of eco-friendly idols of the loving elephant-headed God during the Ganesh-Utsav festivities, was held in Mira Road on Sunday.

The single day exhibition and awareness drive were organized between 10 am to 6 pm at the Appasaheb Dharmadhikari Banquet Hall in the Queens Park area of Mira Road by former deputy mayor-Hasmukh Gehlot in association with the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC), social organizations including -Making the Difference and Vihaan Foundation.

Local legislator- Narendra Mehta was the chief guest of the event in which more than 100 idols made out of eco-friendly material like-paper pulp, cardboard, natural clay (shadu), cow dung, and red soil (matti) were kept on display.

Hundreds of enthusiastic visitors including-citizens, members of local Ganesh-Utsav Mandal’s and social organisations registered their active participation in the event.

“Our aim is to convince devotees that it is entirely feasible to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi in a manner that is both environmentally conscious and spiritually meaningful. A significant shift towards embracing eco-friendly practices, particularly in the material used for the creation of Ganpati idols has been noted since the launch of this initiative last year. Our efforts will continue till the departure from the use of PoP idols, which have detrimental effects on our water bodies after immersion” said Gehlot.

The 11-day festival will begin on 27 August, this year. Apart from spreading awareness about the devastating effects to the marine environment and aquatic eco-system caused due to the immersion of the non-bio-degradable Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols in water bodies, the “Green” volunteers explained about the advantages of eco-friendly idols which are sustainable options which contribute to environmental preservation while celebrating the festivities.

The event aligns with the state government directives to promote environmentally friendly celebrations. Notably, to support the eco-friendly celebrations, the government had previously directed local governing bodies to offer free clay to environmentally conscious idol creators and provide space for exhibitions.

The total number of Lord Ganesh idols which graced the twin-city during the 10-day festival had touched the 20,668 mark in 2024. The figures stood at 20,543 in 2023 and 19,571 in 2022. A total of 1,989 idols were immersed in the artificially created ponds last year.