Planned work ensures cleaner immersion

“Total 350 people of our department have been deployed at 23 ghats. We are planning to increase the manpower tomorrow. They are doing an excellent job but the work is very cumbersome. Next year,we will deploy more cranes and make the work fully mechanised,” said Debashish Kumar,MMIC (Parks and Squares).

About 90 vehicles,which carried waste,including idols and flowers,have been off-loaded from all the ghats of the city. Of these,45 vehicles brought waste from Princep Ghat and Baboo Ghat only.

“The number of idols will increase tomorrow as it is the last day of immersion. We will deploy more vehicles if required,” said Debabrata Biswas,MMIC (Conservancy).

For the first time,the KoPT has engaged a private river transporter to cordon off sections of the river around Baboo Ghat and Judges Ghat,the two major immersion ghats of the city,to prevent the idols from floating away during the tides. Thirty-two people,six launch boats and six mechanised boats have been deployed in each of the two ghats.

“About 1000 idols have been immersed till Sunday night. About 60 percent of the structures have already been removed. Our men are working round-the-clock at the two ghats,” said Capt A K Bagchi,Director (Marine Department),KoPT.

WBPCB officials have started collecting samples of the river water after immersion to check the pollution level. “We shall be able to present the test results by next Monday,” said Biswajeet Mukherjee,chief law officer of the WBPCB.

“Earlier the waste used to rot on the ghats for seven to ten days after immersion and pollute the river water. For the first time I find the guidelines are being followed and all the civic bodies are working in the right earnest in clearing up the ghats,” said environment activist Subhash Dutta.