J. Innocent Divya, Collector of Nilgiris district has appealed to the residents to adhere to a eco friendly Ganesh Chathurthi. With the festival around the corner, she requested people to place seed balls in the organically crafted Ganesha idols to help their dispersal after immersion to pave the way for greening the hills.
She said that though most of the idols are made of clay and can be easily immersed in water, some have been using idols made of plaster of paris and painted with chemicals which are harmful to the environment. If these chemical laced idols were immersed in water, it would pollute the water and disturb the aquatic ecology and further affect the flora and fauna. Therefore, idols made out of chemicals will not be allowed to be immersed in the water sources she said.
