Kendrapada: Hundreds of devotees joined a traditional boat procession on Hansua river at Rajnagar near Bhitarkanika National Park on Thursday to immerse about 20 Durga idols, even as environmentalists criticised the resulting pollution.The decorated boats, carrying idols, priests, boatmen and devotees, travelled about 6 km near riverside villages. Villagers offered coconuts and garlands at river ghats, while crowds watched from both banks, boats and a bridge over Hansua.The boat procession is an age-old immersion tradition in Rajnagar. Devotees earlier swam to the boats to worship the deities, but authorities banned the practice about two decades ago because the river has saltwater crocodiles.Hansua is connected to the water bodies of Bhitarkanika National Park, which are home to more than 1,800 crocodiles, puja committee president Bipin Panda said.Priest Narendra Mishra said puja committees had traditionally transported idols by boat because Rajnagar was criss-crossed by rivers and creeks and lacked bridges. Although roads and bridges now connect the area, villagers have continued the custom.Police and fire brigade personnel made elaborate security arrangements for the ceremony, said IIC, Rajnagar police station, Ratiranjan Nayak.Environmentalists, however, criticised authorities for allowing the immersions. Hemant Rout, secretary of Gahirmatha Marine Turtles and Mangrove Conservation Society, alleged that puja committees dumped idols and non-biodegradable materials, including chemical paints, plastic covers, zari and thermocol, into Hansua in violation of pollution-control guidelines.He said flowers, clothes and decorative materials should be removed before immersion. Many idols were made of plaster of Paris, which takes longer to dissolve and reduces oxygen levels in the water, Rout said.
