Baguiati Durga Puja to go unplastic with jute

KOLKATA: For last few years, Durga Puja organisers have refrained from using thermocol and plastic to decorate Durga Puja pandals. Now, a puja organiser in Baguiati has started an awareness campaign to abolish use of plastic banners, flexes and hoardings which later become a major disposal challenge.
Railpukur United Club in Baguiati launched the campaign on khuti puja.“With increased consciousness about environmental conservation, many organisers aren’t using thermocol and plastic in pandal decorations. But use of plastic in advertisement is rampant. If we don’t curb this now and continue to indiscriminately use plastic flex and hoardings, consequences will be disastrous,” said club secretary Kingshuk Chakrabarty.
The Baguiati pandal will be made of eco-friendly materials such as jute. “Some installations inside the pandal will tell visitors about the necessity of a pollution-free environment,” said the artist Sandip Mukherjee. The National Green Tribunal has expressed concerns over the manufacture and use of flexes and banners. Poly-vinyl chloride used to manufacture flex banners poses a threat to the environment as they are not bio-degradable.
The puja committee organised a rally containing placards, urging everyone to refrain from using flex banners and instead stressed on alternative materials. Several school kids and women participated. Committee members covered banners with jute sheets as a symbolic change. “We’re happy we could start the initiative,” said a member. Environmental activist Subhas Datta said no one had quantified how much flex banners are used during Puja. “They pollute in every way,” said Datta.