suchandra 1 Report post Posted August 21, 2008 Rajanish Kakade/AP An artisan works on a statue of Hindu elephant god Ganesh in preparation for a ten-day long Ganesh Festival Statues of Hindu God Causing River Pollution <!-- headline --> August 21, 2008 11:06 AM http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/international/Aug-08/Hindu-Elephant-Statues-Causing-River-Pollution.html by findingDulcinea Staff New, commercially made idols used in the Hindu festival Ganesh Caturthi are releasing toxic dyes into India’s waterways, spurring a campaign to return to traditional, natural materials. Ganesh Statues Causing Trouble <!-- SECTION RESOURCES --> The “Ganesh Chaturthi” festival celebrates the birthday of the elephant god Ganesh, and is held during the beginning of August or September every year according to the Hindu calendar. The festivities end with the immersion of thousands of large Ganesh statues into bodies of water. ........ width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value=" "></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src=" " type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> The growing crowds honoring Ganesh have attracted commercial vendors offering brightly colored statues that may look appealing but are threatening India’s waterways, according to environmentalists. Traditionally, the idols were made with natural ingredients such as mud, clay and vegetable-based dyes. But the commercialization of the holiday has spawned a proliferation of bigger and brighter idols made out of plaster of Paris and painted with toxic chemical dyes, according to the Kalpavriksh environment action group, which is campaigning to make the festival more environmentally sensitive. “This festival brings together thousands of people, but in modern times is also contributing to serious environmental pollution,” the Kalpavriksh group says, thanks to new commercial Ganesh statues “painted using toxic chemical dyes to make them bright and attractive to buyers.” The toxic materials are poisoning water bodies, harming plants and fish, and sickening those who drink the water downstream. “The immersion of idols made out of chemical materials causes significant water pollution,” the group says, also citing problems with the festival’s crowds and noise. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
RadhaMukunda 0 Report post Posted August 22, 2008 Beautiful stotra recitation. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
