As Ganeshotsav nears, the PoP idol battle drags on in Bombay HC

Published 5 August 2026 · india

The Bombay High Court is hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed in 2024 seeking the effective implementation of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines

The Bombay High Court is hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed in 2024 seeking the effective implementation of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) guidelines against the immersion of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols in natural water bodies. The matter has seen multiple hearings and interim orders over two years, with the case now pending ahead of this year’s Ganeshotsav. The PIL was filed by Rohit Manohar Joshi along with clay-idol craftsmen. The petitioners have sought a prohibition on immersion of PoP idols in natural water bodies, irrespective of height, as well as action against idol-makers using PoP under the Water Pollution Act. The CPCB guidelines and their legal status The CPCB issued revised guidelines on May 12, 2020, prescribing that idols made of natural, biodegradable and eco-friendly material be encouraged, and that idols made of PoP be banned. In June 2025, the CPCB told the Court that its guidelines were advisory rather than statutory, and that its expert committee had clarified the State Government could draft its own immersion policy. The Court expressed displeasure at this position. “If you say you don’t have powers, then why did you issue such guidelines? If you say you don’t have powers, then withdraw these guidelines,” Justice Gadkari observed in July 2026. The Bench noted that other states, two High Courts (Madras and Telangana) and the Green Tribunal had passed orders based on these guidelines. Key developments in 2024 On August 30, 2024, the High Court directed the Maharashtra Government to inform all Sarvajanik Ganesh Mandals to mandatorily follow CPCB guidelines and refrain from installing PoP idols. The Bench expressed displeasure at the lack of implementation by municipal bodies. “In cases where permissions have been granted, they must be told that PoP idols are not to be installed. Where permission is not granted, let the authorities take an undertaking from the Mandals that they will not use PoP idols,” the Chief Justice said. The Court suggested the State Government introduce a statutory mechanism with deterrent measures, including fines.

“There is no deterrence, no fine. You need to introduce some penalty or at least put some fine, otherwise this will continue,” the Bench noted. The January 2025 interim order On January 30, 2025, the High Court issued an interim order against the manufacture, sale and immersion of PoP idols, prohibiting sale and immersion by artisans and vendors ahead of the Maghi Ganesh festival. The June 2025 modification On June 9, 2025, the High Court modified its January order. The Bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Sandeep Marne allowed the manufacture of PoP Ganpati idols, with the caveat that they could not be immersed in natural water bodies without the Court’s permission. The Court directed the State Government to take a policy decision on immersion of PoP idols in light of the CPCB expert committee’s recommendations. “Such idols shall not be immersed in natural water bodies without the leave of this Court,” the Bench observed. The State Government’s 2025 policy On July 21, 2025, the Maharashtra Government formulated a policy permitting immersion of only idols above five feet in natural water bodies, with idols up to five feet to be mandatorily immersed in artificial ponds. The Government told the Court that around 1.96 lakh idols were up to five feet and would be immersed in artificial tanks, while over 7,000 idols above five feet would be immersed in natural water bodies. It said civic bodies would remove the idols from natural water bodies the following morning. The Court expressed concern. “Seven thousand is a huge number. Such a large number of idols going into natural water bodies can cause environmental hazard,” Chief Justice Aradhe observed. The July 2025 interim order On July 24, 2025, the High Court directed that PoP idols up to six feet in height must be “mandatorily” and “necessarily” immersed in artificial water tanks, an order effective until March 2026 for all festivals involving idol immersion. The Court noted that the BMC had created 204 water tanks for 1.95 lakh Ganesh idols below five feet the previous year, but only 85,000 idols were immersed in these tanks, with the rest going into natural water bodies.