Nagpur: A soothing calm prevailed at various immersion points in the city on the first day of visarjan, as devotees performed rituals without much fanfare. There was a steady flow of idols arriving at Gandhisagar Lake, Futala and the artificial tank at Sonegaon, even as NMC officials and workers were busy clearing nirmalya dropped after Hartalika puja performed on Thursday.
The waterfront at Futala looked spick and span as sparkling clean water in artificial tanks shimmered under the afternoon sun. “We have installed two artificial tanks, two ponds on north side, and two centerings made with plywood and artificial tank on south side of the lake,” said NMC official Deendayal Tembekar, busy supervising cleaning of the lake banks. “We have removed 3 tonne nirmalya dumped in the lake yesterday,” he informed.
Nearly forty immersions had taken place at the lake till late afternoon. “Not much guidance is required this year as people are removing puja material and putting it in the huge garbage dumps. Most are also opting for the artificial tank,” he said. “For the past three years I am buying clay idols and immersing them in the artificial tanks as the water here is much cleaner,” said Anil Chaudhary, a private sector employee who performed visarjan in less than a minute.
The soiled and muddy water in the concrete artificial tank was in stark contrast to the clean waters of Sonegaon lake adjacent to it. The tank, where more than forty immersions had been performed since morning, was more than half empty with barely 10ft water. “Since morning we have not seen a single PoP idol. Clay idols dissolve in a short time and colours mingle with water and make it muddy,” said one of the workers cleaning the tank.
For Santosh Chahare, a devotee who had come to check the site, it was not good enough. “I read in the newspaper that this place was stinking so I came here to check myself. But now I will go to Futala,” said Chahare who lives at Chinchbhavan and added, “NMC has not created any immersion facility on Wardha Road.”
With no volunteers around the lake at Gandhisagar, the water in artificial tanks was muddy, and there were leakages in RCC tanks, making the situation here on the first day grim. “Water will get muddy with visarjan in the tanks. That’s why I insisted on a clay idol which sinks immediately, and even told the vendor that I will bring it back if it floats,” said Sudhir Ketkar, a civil contractor, who had come with his family to perform visarjan.
