Nagpur: A 55-ft-long Ganesh idol made entirely of paper in Dabha is emerging as a unique eco-friendly attraction this Ganeshotsav, offering a sustainable alternative to conventional idols.Installed by Sarvajanik Shri Ganesh Mahotsav Mandal, the idol depicts Lord Ganesh in a reclining pose inspired by Lord Vishnu’s idol at the Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram.“Around 1.5 tonnes of steel were used for the structural framework, while special paper procured from Mumbai was used to create the idol,” organiser Rajkumar Gupta said.“Last year, we created a 51-ft Ganesh idol. That motivated us to attempt something bigger and different this year. We had planned three designs before selecting this one,” he added.Artist Shashank Turankar and his team took 28 days to create the idol after finalising the design and beginning work on August 17.The organisers deliberately moved away from the conventional tall Ganesh idol format to create something distinctive. They have also approached the World Book of Records team regarding the massive installation with the help of chef and cultural personality Vishnu Manohar.The mandal has also planned an immersion process designed to ensure that the paper idol eventually becomes part of the soil instead of generating conventional immersion waste. Gupta said devotees have been asked to bring water from rivers or holy water kept in their puja rooms. The collected water will be placed in a pot and used for the idol’s puja and Panchamrit rituals before Visarjan.The consecrated water will then be collected in a tanker and used to fill a specially prepared tank. A pit will be dug at the site, where the steel framework will be removed. Since the paper is water-soluble, it will eventually decompose and become part of the soil, the organisers said.
