Residents of Greenland Society, in Viman Nagar, have left no stone unturned in celebrating a green Ganesh Chaturthi this year. Not only have many of the families opted for clay idols, instead of Plaster of Paris (PoP) ones, but they have also gone a step further and immersed the idols in water tanks within the society itself. "During Ganesh Puja, our members get clay idols for their individual homes as well as for the society and this year we have immersed the idols in large water containers. After immersion, the water will be used for gardening. It is our effort to reduce the waste that goes into the already polluted rivers of the city,” said Col (Retd) Shashikant Dalvi, a resident of Greenland Society.
The society, which houses around 200 residents, has been organising workshops within its premises for the last two years. They have invited artisans to conduct classes on making clay Ganesh idols to promote the use of eco-friendly materials. With over five families choosing to use the idols they had created during the workshop, the residents are confident that the numbers will increase in time. Now that all the idols have been immersed, society members have also decided upon environment-friendly steps to dispose other waste generated. Dalvi added, “Around 20 to 30 families bring in clay Ganesh idols to their homes during the festival. Approximately 40 to 50 bags of waste is generated after the festivities end. We do not dispose the waste in rivers. Instead, we use it in our compost pits to make manure.”
Greenland Society has always been environmentally aware and has introduced various eco-friendly alternatives into their daily lives. The residents  have installed a rain-water harvesting system, and energy efficient lights in apartments as well as within the society premises. They also intend to adopt other innovative ideas for environment conservation in the future.