Allahabad HC ban on idol immersion hits sculptors’ biz

VARANASI: The district administration's decision to adhere to the Allahabad High Court's order on the ban on immersion of idols in Ganga has not only confused the Durga Puja organizers of the city but has also left the idol-making business in the doldrums, ahead of the festival.
While makers of Durga idols begin the season on an optimistic note around this time every year, watching sales peak as time goes by, this time they are worried some organizers might place orders and then reguse to pick up the idols. “Everybody is tense. The district administration is tense because they have to adhere to HC's order and people are protesting against it, puja organizers are worried as they won’t be able to immerse idols in Ganga as per tradition and we, sculptors, are also tense as we are worried business may not pick up this year,” said Manoranjan Pal, idol-maker from Bhelupur area.
He said, “Every year we start preparations for making idols of goddess Durga around May. This time, too, we started with the preparations hoping that we would get more orders. But, with the idol immersion row for the past few days, we do not know if we should speed up the preparations before the festival. Two puja organizers have already backed out and cancelled their orders.” Considering how things turned out on Vishwakarma puja, when only 9 of 17 idols were sold, we are worried as a lot of our money is at stake, he said.
Another noted idol-maker, Gopal Pal of Bangali Tola area, said, “This is upsetting. Ever since the district administration decide to comply with the orders of HC imposing ban on idol immersion, our business has been affected. First, Vishwakarma puja celebrations were hampered as some of the puja committees decided to use portraits instead of idols and now as Durga Puja approaches, we grapple with the dilemma of even starting to make idols. ”Over 30 idols of Lord Vishwakarma saw no buyers this year and I am afraid something similar might happen this time too. Although, nothing can deter us from making idols as we have been doing so for generations and are known for it, this puja seems dull compared to those of previous years,” he said. This year, Pal has sculpted as many as 48 idols for puja committees but confirmation of eight idols is still pending.
Third generation idol-maker Abhijit Biswas echoed similar views and said, “It’s more of a torture for our community. Though I have reduced the number of idols from 47 to 37 this year, there is still an uncertainty if even those would be picked up. Some of the puja club representatives are still confused and have not placed orders as yet. But, we cannot wait till the last minute so we have invested our hard-earned money, hoping they would purchase idols at the last minute,” he said.
Earlier, local administration had not allowed the immersion of Ganesha idols in Ganga even after a 36-hour dharna by puja organisers and seers at Godowlia crossing. To disperse the gathering, police had to use force around midnight on September 22 in which several people, including seers and vedic students, were injured.