According to the BMC, the last day of visarjan saw an increase of 3,000 idols immersed as compared to last year; maximum noise level on the last day went up to 99 dBA, from the previous 96 dBA
The Mumbai celebrated a noisier Ganpati festival this year, according to the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, and also immersed more idols, as per the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
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Schoolchildren, NCC cadets and NGO workers pick up the waste and litter left behind by Ganpati devotees at Versova beach and Girgaum Chowpatty. Pic/Deepak Salvi
The eleventh day of the festival this year had eleven days saw 45,458 idols being immersed, of which 8,058 were public mandals, as compared to 42,355 last year. There were a total of 71 natural immersion sites and 27 artificial lakes created by the civic body.
Last year, a total of 2.07 lakh idols were immersed in the entire festival on all ten days. The final tally for this year has already crossed two lakh, but exact figures are still being calculated, said a BMC official.
On the noise front, the MPCB recorded a maximum noise level of 99 dBA at its measuring point near Manav Mitra Mandal in Borivli (West) the minimum noise level there was 73 dbA.
The second loudest maximum levels were recorded at the Parsiwadi Mitra Mandal, Arthur Road naka, in Chinchpokli, at 97 dbA. Last year, the point at Dadar TT had the highest noise 96 dbA maximum, and 74 dbA minimum.
A spokesperson from MPCB said, “We conducted our survey at 25 points in the city. The level of noise has increased as compared to last year.”
Banners and nirmalaya
After the last day of visarjan, the civic body has pulled down a total of 486 banners/posters/flex boards, out of which 66 were political and 353 were religious, in a single day.
Sharad Bande, superintendent of the licence department, said, “We are in the process of making the city defacement-free. Permissions are granted only for 11 days of the festival; thereafter, the banners are illegal and have to be removed.”
During all days of the festival, ‘nirmalya’ or floral offerings made to the Lord are collected, and the civic body uses it to produce compost, which its Gardens department then utilises in its work. Around 50 vehicles were deployed across 24 wards to collect this waste.
The BMC has collected 400 metric tonnes of floral waste in the first 10 ten days of the festival this year. Last year, the BMC had managed to collect 498 metric tonnes of floral waste. The last day’s (Monday) collection, though still ongoing, is expected to surpass the previous year’s levels.
Offering a silver lining, a senior officer of the BMC’s Solid Waste Management department said, “This year, the amount of plastic collected is less than last year. The final figures are still being computed and will be ready by Wednesday afternoon.”
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