Eco-friendly Festivals: Pune recycles clay from Ganesha idols to minimise clay mining effect

A campaign initiated in Pune city collected 15,000 kilograms of clay sludge after the traditional immersion of Ganesh idols during the recent festival. This clay sludge will be used by idol makers for making new idols. Natural clay is a non-renewable material usually mined in states like Gujarat and West Bengal and brought to Maharashtra and other parts of India to make idols. Clay mining impacts both the environment and the health of the miners. Authorities in Pune are also reusing festival flowers and other religious wastes to make festivals more sustainable. Mongabay-India correspondent Manish Kumar reports