Eco-friendly farewell to Gauri and Ganesh in Thane

THANE: Nearly 40% of the Gauri and Ganesha idols immersion on the sixth day of the festival in Thane were done in an eco-friendly manner in Thane, officials informed.
Around 12,132 Gauri and Ganesh idols were immersed at various visarjan points in the city till Monday late, of which nearly 40% were done at the artificial ponds created at several areas in the city, said an official from the municipal corporation.
Around 178 idols were deposited at the designated collection centres where devotees surrender the idols that are later collectively immersed by the corporation.
Officials informed that the artificial pond at Masunda lake saw 760 Ganesh and 61 Gauri idol immersions while the Upwan lake immersion point saw the highest volume of visarjan at 1,480 Ganesh and 69 Gauri idol immersions followed by Dattamandir ghat with 550 idol immersions.
Meanwhile, several residents, including Shiv Sena (rebel faction) MLA Pratap Sarnaik, opted for immersing Bappa idols within their society premises.
"We have observed the tradition for the last several years which was started by my father. The size of idols has increased but we continue to celebrate the same in an eco-friendly manner. We immersed our Bappa idol in a water-filled drum in our complex and will drain it in our garden the following day," said Sarnaik.