A division bench of the High Court comprising acting chief justice PC Ghose and justice Vilas V Afzulpurkar on Wednesday directed Ganesh Utsav Samitis, amicus curiae D. Prakash Reddy and G.
Vidyasagar and other stakeholders to attend a meeting to be held by the AP Pollution Control Board on September 18 and then submit a report to the court giving their opinions or suggestions on immersion of Ganesh idols in water bodies.
The bench gave the direction while dealing with a batch of petitions seeking a ban on immersion of idols in water bodies, including the Hussainsagar and other lakes in the state, and initiation of steps to protect the environment and lakes from pollution. It posted the matter to September 21 for further hearing.
Mamidi Venu Madhav, an advocate and one of the petitioners, urged the court to grant an interim direction on immersion of Ganesh idols in the lake in view of the forthcoming festival.
The APPCB, in its action taken report submitted to the court, said it provided Rs 1 lakh each to district collectors as subsidy to encourage the use of eco-friendly clay Ganesh idols on the condition that each idol be sold at Rs 10 by NGOs.
The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has taken up distribution of clay idols in its limits and tied up with idol makers for distributing 25,000 clay idols at subsidised rates.
The Pollution Control Board has asked all regional and zonal offices to monitor rivers, lakes and other water bodies during immersion of Ganesh idols.
It is convening a meeting on September 18 with stakeholders like HMDA, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), municipal administration and urban development, revenue and police departments, APTransco, and Ganesh Utsav Committees to review implementation of Central Pollution Control Board guidelines on immersion of Ganesh idols.
Traffic curbs in dhoolpet for Ganesh idol sale
HYDERABAD: Traffic restrictions will be imposed in Dhoolpet, a big market for Ganesha idols, to ensure smooth transportation of idols to various parts of the city ahead of the Vinayaka Chavithi.
Hyderabad police commissioner Anurag Sharma said that the traffic restrictions will come into force from 8am on September 15 to the midnight of September 20.
No vehicle will be allowed from Bhoigudakaman cross roads towards the Gandhi statue at Puranapul via Mangalhat police station. Vehicles coming from Ek-Minar Masjid towards Puranapul will be diverted towards Jumerat Bazar via Darusalam.
Puranapul-bound vehicles from Asifnagar will be diverted towards Aghapura cross road. Traffic movement from Gandhi statue to Bhoiguda Kaman will not be allowed. Trucks hired for transporting the idols will have to be parked at Jummarath Bazar ground