HC notice on plea for ban on Pop idols

The Bombay High Court issued notice to the state government on Wednesday, over a plea seeking the implementation of the revised guidelines by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), which has mandated a complete ban on the use of Plaster of Paris (PoP) for religious idols that are to be immersed in water.  

- Urvi Mahajani

The CPCB had issued ‘Revised Guidelines for Idol Immersion’ on May 12, 2020, mandating the complete ban on use of PoP “due to the extreme and irreparable water pollution caused by the immersion of these idols in natural water bodies”.  

A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar issued the notice while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) petition, filed by three citizens and nine clay idol makers and small-scale craftsmen, contending that the actions by the respondent authorities to enforce the guidelines were “farcical measures, designed only to pay lip-service to the provisions of the guidelines”.