Bombay HC Reserves Verdict on PoP Idols PIL Filed by Thane Resident
The Bombay High Court on Friday reserved its verdict on a public interest litigation filed by Thane resident Rohit Joshi seeking the enforcement of Central Pollution Control Board guidelines that prohibit the manufacture and immersion of Plaster of Paris idols due to their environmental impact.
A division bench of Justice AS Gadkari and Justice Kamal Khata clarified that the court's interim order will remain in effect until the final judgment is delivered. Under this order, idols measuring above six feet in height are permitted to be immersed in natural water bodies, whereas idols measuring up to six feet must be immersed only in artificial water bodies.
Joshi filed the petition arguing that despite Central Pollution Control Board directives, several manufacturers continued producing Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols in violation of the ban. Advocate Ronita Bhattacharya, appearing for Joshi during Friday's hearing, argued that the state government had failed to assess the impact of PoP idol immersion on natural water bodies and pointed out the difficulty of retrieving immersed idols from running rivers.
Bhattacharya referred to previous high court orders on the matter. The court had modified a January order that imposed a blanket ban on the manufacture and sale of PoP idols. A subsequent order in June allowed manufacturing and sales to resume but barred immersion in natural water bodies. In July, the high court allowed all Ganesha idols measuring up to six feet, including those made of PoP, to be immersed in artificial ponds after the state confirmed it had mandated artificial ponds for smaller idols.
During a hearing on August 4, the Maharashtra government had sought three years from the high court to gradually phase out PoP idols and requested to continue earlier relaxations. The bench questioned why the state had not acted sooner on an issue that has remained pending for years.
Advocate General Milind Sathe submitted that the state was prepared to follow Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to adopt eco-friendly clay idols, but could not enforce a complete ban this year since PoP idols had already been manufactured.
