Punekars mould in eco-friendly message with clay idols

With Ganeshotsav setting in, Punekars are ready to welcome the elephant god with enthusiasm and an eco-friendly touch on Monday. Apart from the public Ganpati mandaps setup across the city, a tradition which was started by Lokmanya Tilak 127 years ago, thousands of households too install individual Ganpati idols at their homes.

This year, eco-friendly clay Ganpati idols are drawing in a huge crowd. Alternate options are an emerging market as more number of people are shunning Plaster of Paris (POP) idols due to its harmful environmental impact. The city streets too are lined and decked up with various environment-friendly options for residents to choose from.

“We have been in the clay idol business since the last 12 years and in the last four to five years, the demand for clay Ganpati idols has seen an increasing trend. We started with 4,000 idols and slowly, the number has now reached 50,000 clay Ganpati idols, and that too with different types of varieties in it. As compared to POP idols, they are a bit expensive since the time and care taken to make clay idols is more. This year, we hardly have 100 idols left for sale at our stall,” said Chaitanya Tagade, owner of Shri Ganesh Kala Kendra clay Ganapti idol stall at Tilak road.

Another clay Ganpati idol stall owner, Rakesh Pawar at Rasta peth, said, “Till 2015, we were selling POP Ganpati idols and there was good demand for it, but after that people started asking for clay idols. So, we decided to shift and since 2016, we started keeping only clay idols. Clay idols cost more, but the demand is also high.” 

Abhishek Khole, an entrepreneur, said, “We have been installing a clay Ganpati idol at our home since the last three years. Earlier, we used to bring a POP idol, but when we were made aware about the disadvantages of using such idols, I stopped buying them. Even though clay idols are costly, we prefer it since during the immersion process there is no water pollution.” 

Pune’s Manache Ganpati list out their first-day plan 

When it comes to Ganeshotsav celebrations in Pune, the five Manache Ganpati are the most prominent and revered Ganpati mandals in the city. On September 2 (Monday), all five mandals are set for the grand start of the festival with various programmes organised throughout the 10 days. Following are the first-day plans for these five Manache Ganapti mandals of the city – 

Kasba Ganpati Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal 

The procession of the mandal will start at 9:30am from Kunte chowk and at 11:40am the Ganpati idol puja will be conducted at the mandal’s mandap. 

Tambdi Jogeshwari Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal 

The procession of the mandal will start at 10:30am from Kelkar road and at 1pm, the Ganpati idol puja will be conducted. 

Guruji Talim Mandal 

The procession of the mandal will start at 9:30am from Ganpati chowk on Laxmi road and at 12:30pm, the Ganpati idol puja will be conducted. 

Tulshibaug Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal 

The procession of the mandal will start at 10am from Ganpati chowk on Laxmi road and at 12:30pm the Ganpati idol puja will be conducted. 

Kesariwada Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Mandal 

The procession of the mandal will start at 10am from Manikeshwar Vishnu chowk in Narayan peth and at 11:30am, the Ganpati idol will be conducted. 

Use of loud speakers

The Pune district guardian minister Chandrakant Patil had earlier announced that for six days during the Ganpati festival from September 7 to 12, the rule banning use of loudspeakers after 10pm will be relaxed. So, for the last six days, Ganpati mandals can play loudspeakers till midnight this year. Last year, the ban was relaxed only for last four days.