Environmentalism was the
toast of several Puja pandals in Kolkata this time. But at the end of the
festival, thousands of idols still lined up for immersion in rivers and lakes
Every Durga Puja in Bengal, organisers
and artisans and craftsmen aspire to be at their creative best. Temporary
pandals, their decoration and even idols convey carefully chosen messages. From
victimisation of Saurav Ganguly to the evils of US foreign policy, the themes have
ranged from parochial to international in the past. This year, at least two
dozen Kolkata pujas were built on green ideas.
The plight of the Bengal
tiger has inspired puja organisers in the past. This time, puja themes went the
whole hog, from the dangers of human cloning to ocean pollution in Goa, water conservation,
impact of global warming on insects, butterfly conservation and, not
surprisingly, scarcity of Hilsa. More than half a dozen pujas showcased tribal
culture and ethos while others vowed to save the earth and plant trees. At
least two highlighted the plight of the Ganga.
Yet, once the puja was over,
thousands of idols were taken to the river and a few designated lakes and ponds
in the city and hundreds across the state. In Delhi, organisers complained that
enough water was not released in the Yamuna and the idols had to be dumped on
the mud. In Kolkata, massive infrastructure has been put in place in the recent
years to lift the idols with cranes immediately after immersion to keep the
river clean. But it is impossible to recover every chunk of clay and straw
painted in leaden colours that floats away and starves the water systems of
oxygen.
To be fair, a few organisers
opted for metallic or fibre glass idols that became collector’s items after the
festival. Others used organic colours. But these have been exceptions. One guilt-stricken
organiser who strived to create awareness about pollution in the Ganga admitted
that their idols, too, were immersed in a local south Kolkata lake designated
by the administration. “Our huge Shiva structure has not been immersed. We will
ask the fire brigade to dismantle it. The rest of the idols had to be drowned.
We didn’t have a choice because that is the religious tradition,” he explained
uncomfortably.
Religion though does not
demand immersion of idols in rivers and lakes. Priests agree that the custom of
tarpan -- where hymns are chanted
while the idol’s face is reflected in water held in a saucer – completes the
immersion process. There is no bar on using the same set of idols for
subsequent pujas. Yet, there are few takers for non-clay idols for long-term
use or doing away with the tradition of physical dumping of the paraphernalia in
natural waters.
Instead, ineffectual
solutions such as barricading parts of the river and other water bodies with concrete
walls to demarcate permanent immersion zones are being discussed. Blocking a
river in its course or further eating into fast depleting lakes and ponds is
too high a cost for continuing with such an outdated and dispensable custom.
Be it Ganapati in Mumbai or
Durga in Kolkata, the immersion of idols today merely serve as a social excuse
for extended celebration at the end of the festival routine. Environment-friendly
alternatives, such as “dissolving” the idols with water jets in concrete tanks to
prevent leaching of chemicals into natural water systems, are not likely to
compromise that fun.
Oriental religious traditions
have always worshipped nature. The Prithvi Sukta (earth hymn) in the Atharva
Veda is possibly the most ancient expression of environmentalism. With changing times, soulless customs have
replaced those values. Today, we make monsters of monkeys by feeding them to
compensate for our sin. We trample over and litter our best forests on
pilgrimages. We parade elephants, sacrifice goats and dump everything – from
mortal remains to daily puja flowers – in rivers.
But if sprinkling a few drops
of Ganga water is believed to have the purifying effect of a dip in the river,
why do we need more than a saucerful for the ritual of immersion?
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